Ring my Bell

The other night, I biked into town to meet a girlfriend for dinner. As I made a right into a street, the car ahead of me suddenly slammed on its brakes and the driver threw the car into reverse. Into reverse barely inches from me. On instinct, I also immediately slammed on my brakes and swerved to avoid being hit.

You know how when you're in a car and this sort of thing happens, you lay on your horn out of fear -- HEY! Accckkk! Stop stop!!! You're about to hit me! -- and anger -- HEY ASSHOLE! Watch where you're going, you blind jerk!!...?

Weeelll, when you're on a bike, you want to do the same thing but then you realize, oh dear, here's me without a horn. How vexing. But before you completely realize how absurd what you're about to do is, your hand flies to your BELL... yes, your BIKE BELL... and you ring it furiously to let the people in the car... that car that has the windows rolled up... that "hey, um, excuse me, but I am here on my bike, and can't you hear me ringing my bike bell at you? Um, um, excuuuuuseee meeeeee."

And then the ridiculousness of the situation hits you and you realize that you are making a complete fool of yourself.

Luckily, I was alone on the street and no Dutch people were around to laugh at me.