#Bluey driving

[blurban-form]

Some “Rules of the Road” in Queensland

In “The Sign”, Chilli talks her way out of a possible ticket by having the police dog review the traffic laws relating to if it’s ok for children to sit in the front seat of a car. Bluey is ok because she’s old enough and all of the back seats are in use. The police dog was unfamiliar with this rule.

Mum had checked this before setting out on the trip, so she knew she was in the clear.

I’d actually been putting together a post on little specific road rules prior to “The Sign”. Here are a few more rules to keep in mind.

Your car window can’t be rolled down more than five centimetres (two inches) when parked.

Tooting your horn, like how Bucky did it in “The Sign” is illegal throughout Australia.

Riding a bike “no hands” is illegal Australia-wide.

You can’t pay-by-phone in a drive-through (unless you put your car in park and turn off the ignition.)

Putting your arm out the window to wave goodbye is illegal; five people were fined in 2017-18 for travelling in a motor vehicle with a body part outside of a window or door.

[heart-star]

You can already guess the reference, no need of presentations.

[judacris]

Bluey and Her Big Truck in: Backing Up // dm29.deviantart.com

"Beep, beep, beep" went the truck, slowly backing itself up.

[cheriboms]

happy time travel invention day everybody 🎉

[wolfdog-weatherman]

This episode of Bluey is called Groundhog Day!

[unable2sitstill]

I hope bluey normalizes kids barking at each other

[threetrenchcoatsinatrenchcoat]

some brilliant fanartist please draw the stupendous stoats like surrounded by existential ecohorror but in the style of bluey

[erin-epica]

Bluey's "The Weekend" but it keeps switching between the pilot and finished episode

[t0orus]

Captured by little man. 📸

[alolanrain]

Ash drives like Muffin from Bluey

[blurban-form]

Motornormativity (1/4?)

Another one of those long reads on here. Stick with me for this one…

Wikipedia says that “normativity” is the phenomenon in human societies of designating some actions or outcomes as good, desirable, etc, and others as bad, undesirable, or not-allowed.

Motornormativity is a specific case of this… the case can be made that past decisions now mean that driving is the only “realistic” form of transportation in many first-world cities, and society just goes along with this, and we just have to overlook the negatives of driving.

Put another way: Society just takes for granted a shared, automatic assumption that travel is fundamentally something you just have to do by car.

Everything from street design to the legal system to media reporting to shows on TV… all contribute (maybe insidiously?) with a consistent message being hammered home that motoring is all-important (and the harms of motoring are not important.)

Now does “Bluey” play a role in this? Does it contribute to viewers taking driving for granted?

Yes, but on the other hand, perhaps not entirely?

Read on...

1. Happy Motoring…

Car use is the norm for the families in "Bluey", the parents are all driving SUVs. I’ve identified a number of the models in past posts:

The Heeler SUV

Jack’s Family’s SUV

Chloe’s Family's SUV

Driving and cars are also the focal points of a number of episodes including “Road Trip”, “Explorers”, and “Pizza Girls”.

People/dog-people, if asked would probably say driving has many advantages, especially for families with small children -- it’s convenient, saves time compared to other modes of transportation (many times transit trips can be 2x or even 3x or more time slower than driving if transit even is an option), and is much more comfortable.

Even with the drawbacks to driving, i.e. costs (fuel, maintenance, insurance, the cost of the vehicle itself), stress/road rage, safety risks, the impacts on society, pollution, road requirements, etc., etc… most of these aren’t thought about most of the time by most people, certainly not every time they get ready to make a trip.

Note that this is generally the case whether you’re a dog-person or a human.

More to come…

[don-dake]

Bluey S3E19: Pizza 🍕 Girls

[abluehappyface]

Am I even worth anything?

[blueytidbits]

Madge the Granny

Madge is a reoccurring character that’s mentioned in episodes. She’s Chilli’s unreasonable coworker, and based on her name, photo, and health issues, she’s likely an older woman. Which makes it extra funny when it’s revealed in “Trains” that Chilli’s Granny name is also Madge.

[icterid-rubus]

I wish i still worked childcare so I could recommend parents watch Bluey. “How can you play with kids all day without going crazy or fighting?” Just watch Bluey. All you need to know in like 10 minute increments.