#Tollway

[somewhat-a-sigma]

oasis

[me3dia]

This road is now a tollway.

Elephants have learned highway robbery

[vcollies]

when for the first time in your life you've found a medication that actually works and you've realized that you have a lot more energy and feel a hell of a lot better when you're not working three times as hard as other people to achieve the same result

[music-for-them-asses]

It's normally 25 minutes to the venue from my place, but there's multiple wrecks so it's over an hour now 🙃🙃🙃🫠🫠🫠

[kabartangsel]

PT Nusantara Infrastructure Tbk Dukung UMKM Lokal Milik Disabilitas Melalui Program Komunitas Berdaya Nusantara di Tangsel

PT Nusantara Infrastructure Tbk (NI) bersama dengan PT Metro Pacific Tollways Indonesia Services (MPTIS) meresmikan program pemberdayaan disabilitas “Komunitas Berdaya Nusantara” untuk mendukung peningkatan usaha kelompok binaan penyandang disabilitas pada Kamis, (28/11/24). Peresmian program dihadiri oleh perwakilan dari Dinas Sosial dan Dinas Koperasi & UKM Kota Tangerang Selatan (Tangsel),…

[angryraptor13]

My mom and I once accidentally took Mom's Mini Cooper (tiny, adorable baby racecar thing with VERY low clearance) through 20 miles of logging & ATV trails in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The weather was great, all sunny and cheerful, and it was the MOST TERRIFYING DRIVE OF MY LIFE.

We had been using Mom's phone for GPS, but this being the UP, cell signal was sketchy at best. So once we found ourselves stuck on the logging trails (that Google Maps thought were Real Roads for some reason - they even had names!), we couldn't turn around or reset the Maps app because there was no signal. We *did* have a paper map as a backup, of course, but the logging & ATV trails weren't on it.

So we took a Mini Cooper. Down 20 MILES. of LOGGING TRAILS.

The paths were more rut than road, and the ruts were filled with water from a recent rain, so there was no way to tell how deep they were or how jagged the bottoms might be. They were narrow trails, too; if anyone had come up from the other direction, there would've been no room to pass. I most dreaded a head-on collision with a massive logging truck as my mom carefully maneuvered Baby Racecar around and through ruts that could've scraped the bottom out of her low-clearance car.

We also crossed a couple one-way "bridges" consisting of two long planks of wood. Like walking a tightrope, except you're driving a CAR.

Shockingly, Baby Racecar survived the unscheduled offroading relatively unscathed! There was a panel or two loose on the bottom of the car, a decent-sized scratch in the paint on the hood, and mud. LOTS of mud. But the car was perfectly driveable! Major kudos to the engineers who designed it. Mom got it fixed up once we got home, and she still drives it.

Writing fanfic as a non-US citizen like

[hotelbooking]

Days Inn & Suites by Wyndham Sam Houston Tollway Welcome to Days Inn & Suites by Wyndham Sam Houston Tollway, a charming 2.5-star hotel located in the vibrant city of Houston, Texas. With its convenient location and comfortable accommodations, this hotel is the perfect choice for both business and leisure travelers. At Days Inn & Suites by Wyndham Sam Houston Tollway, you can expect a seamless check-in process starting from 2:00 PM. The friendly and attentive staff will be there to welcome you and ensure that your stay is off to a great start. When it's time to check-out, you can take your time and relax until 11:00 AM, allowing you to make the most of your stay. With 52 well-appointed rooms, Days Inn & Suites by Wyndham Sam Houston Tollway offers a cozy and inviting atmosphere for guests. Each room is thoughtfully designed with comfort in mind, featuring modern amenities such as a flat-screen TV, free Wi-Fi, and a work desk. Whether you're traveling for business or leisure, you'll...

[carlocarrasco]

DOTr postpones news rules and imposition of fines for motorists with no RFID to October 1, 2024

This is for motorists who have been traveling along the highways without radio frequency identification (RFID) tags or with insufficient load. The Department of Transportation (DOTr) recently announced that it has officially postponed to October 1, 2024 the implementation of new tollway guidelines and fines, according to a BusinessWorld news report. The implementation was supposed to have…

[the-mozzarella-brothers]

do any of yall ever see a post that mentions the capital city in ur boring little state that no one has ever heard about like ever and youre about to act so excited but then you realise you’ll dox yourself if you do so you cant.

[somewhat-a-sigma]

oasis 4.7.16

[mrsmoose54]

Rental Car Toll Charges

TIP: Do your research before booking and compare rental companies. I received a message from my daughter 24 hours before her flight to New York in regard to paying for tolls in a rental car. Her route was from JFK to Maryland and couldn’t work out her options. I have previously written about the Orlando Visitor Toll Pass – Save up to 80% and Illinois Tollway on 2023 road trip States 46 & 47…

[rohans-daughter]

bored bored bored bored

[insert arietty clock from the 1997 borrowers here]

[digitalfilipina]

MPTC Units Gear up for Road Safety Month

Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC), the leading mobility infrastructure and solutions provider in the Philippines, joins the country in celebrating the road safety month with ‘Mission: Road Safety’. MPTC is undertaking this initiative to reinforce its expressways’ road safety mission based on the 3 pillars of safety – safe self, safe vehicle, and safe roads. “Mission: Road Safety”…

[theonion]

Hopes for a Midwest peace accord were dealt a severe blow Monday, when a bomb ripped through a toll booth on the I-90 Illinois Tollway. The attack, which killed six and delayed westbound traffic for hours, is believed to be the work of Iowa-based militant Lutheran extremists.

The explosion is the deadliest in the troubled region since Oct. 4, 1997, when a bomb went off in a crowded Kankakee flea market, killing 22.

Illinois governor-elect George Ryan denounced the attack as “the work of cowards.”

“If there is to be any hope of a lasting peace in the Middle West, these sorts of despicable acts of violence must not be tolerated,” said Ryan, speaking before an emergency session of the Illinois legislature. “All sides in the Midwest crisis must demonstrate a genuine commitment to honoring the terms of the Lake Geneva Convention.”

The bombing, which reopened deep historical wounds in the unstable, strife-torn Midwest, sparked mass outrage and protest among Illinoisans. Full Story

[here4tripitaka]

Chapter 56: Tripitaka gets mugged; Tripitaka and Wukong have a blue

In this chapter, rather refreshingly, nobody wants to eat or have sex with Tripitaka. No. In this chapter, Tripitaka has the equally disastrous but rather more mundane experience of getting mugged.

Yep. Not realising who he is, some run-of-the-mill local bandits try to mug him, just like they would any other guy on the road. How’s that for equality?

It also goes to show how important it is to be in the know. If only they’d realised who he was, they could have eaten or sexed him and gained immortality. Clearly word doesn’t travel as fast on the human grapevine as the demonic grapevine. You’ve got to pay more attention to who’s been reincarnated recently, lads.

Anyway. I’m loving Bajie and Wukong’s dynamic in this chapter. They’re just two guys joking around, having fun and annoying each other for shits and giggles. Bajie is trying to hurry up Dragon Horse - who doesn’t care, and keeps plodding along at the same speed. Wukong rebukes Bajie, but then decides Bajie has a good point about hurrying up, and sends Dragon Horse sprinting. Owned, Bajie.

These hijinks lead to Tripitaka being galloped way up the road, all on his lonesome, where he is surrounded by bandits who want to mug him:

Pardon me. Not mug him. They are… self-appointed… tollway men:

They take payment in the form of clothes, horses and gold. And they don’t give concession rates to monks. Failure to pay may result in detention up a tree until one of your mates can come up with the money.

Now, what did I say about Tripitaka being better when Wukong isn’t around? There are no tears here: Tripitaka handles it like a pro. Sort of. He explains that, as a monk, he’s not exactly their best bet if they’re looking for sweet cash money. When they demand his clothes and horse instead, he just calmly explains that his robes aren’t worth stealing. He also implicitly threatens them that they’ll get a bad incarnation if they’re mean to him:

I love this little backgrounder about how the robes are made. It seems like the patchwork thing is a true story. Apparently, traditionally:

“Jiasha are made by piecing together sections of cloth donated from members of the community in a patchwork-style design. Unlike patchwork, the arrangement of panels is very specific, influenced by the Buddhist mandala motif, with a core center and flowing symmetry. The modest cut of the jiasha and pieced-together appearance references the rags worn by the Buddha during his ascetic period.”

Anyway, the muggers slash tollway men still aren’t impressed, so Tripitaka starts lying and pretending that Wukong will turn up any minute with the cash they want. That’s fine, but the narrator has a mega brain fade:

What? “Never lied in his life before”? Uh, remember two chapters ago, when Tripitaka was swearing to love and cherish the queen of Woman State til death do they part? Yeah. That little thing.

In any event, this is where Tripitaka begins crying. Well, fair enough. He did really try. The bandits tie him up and leave him dangling from a tree, where Wukong finds him.

I have to say, I love Wukong’s personality in this chapter, dubious as it may be. He’s so jovial:

I love him trolling the bandits, channelling pretend spirituality:

… before sweetly telling them that perhaps they should actually give him THEIR money:

And playing with the bandits - telling them they can have his staff if they can pick it up:

Ah, the iconic needle/staff in the ear:

But I’m interrupting myself:

Wukong is having a blast. Needless to say, he kills a few bandits. The rest flee.

Tripitaka proceeds to absolutely lose his marbles about Wukong committing homicide. And don’t get me wrong: it’s homicide. But Tripitaka manages to do it in a way that makes him come off as a jerk - which is quite something, when you’re protesting homicide.

When he discovers what’s happened, Tripitaka loses all spiritual composure. He starts acting like a road rager stuck in peak hour traffic, muttering low-grade verbal abuse:

Wukong isn’t even in earshot at this point. When he does get within earshot, Tripitaka continues:

Spite? That doesn’t sound very spiritual!

He attempts to give the bandits a proper burial, which seems nice at first. He gets Bajie to bury them, and tries to find incense and candles for the ritual - or substitutes, at least. But once he starts praying, it becomes clear what his real motives are. All he wants to do is suck up to the deceased, point the finger at Wukong, and make sure no ghosts come seeking retribution against him. It’s totally self-centred and fear-driven - not coming from a genuine place of caring for the deceased at all:

There is more to his prayer, and… it isn’t great, either. It’s just him telling the bandits that he, Tripitaka, tried to play nice (so it’s their own fault they got killed); that their deaths are Wukong’s fault (not his); and that he’s been very nice to them by doing this funeral ritual (ie he didn’t perform this funeral for selfless reasons: he did it so they will give him credit).

He could at least have wished them a positive reincarnation. Or something, anything, that was purely for their sake and not for his. Alas! Our young Tripitaka still has a way to go, spiritually.

Bajie sees through Tripitaka’s pseudo-spirituality, and teases him:

Wukong is less amused. He seems to find the ass-kissing funeral schtick ridiculous and kind of cowardly. Wukong isn’t afraid of any ghosts coming after him and makes this clear - perhaps more to make a point to Tripitaka than anything else:

Next, they find shelter at an old couple’s hut. The old man is nearly hysterical at the sight of the disciples, and won’t calm down. His wife is far more grounded, and gets him back on track.

I love how blunt people are about Bajie’s looks, and how indomitably cheerful Bajie’s response is:

They all have dinner, during which they find out that the old couple’s son is one of the bandits. Wukong offers to kill the son (huh?!), but the old man prefers him to stay alive, so he’ll have someone to dig his grave one day. The disciples gently remind Wukong that it’s none of his business.

Let’s cut to the middle of the night, where the bandits gatecrash the old couple’s house and decide to kill Tripitaka & co in their sleep. The old man tips them off.

I want to pause here to observe how bizarrely calm and composed the old man is. This is a guy who became hysterically scared just looking at the disciples’ faces. Now he’s in a tense and unexpected emergency situation, trying to sneak one group of guests out of the house, lest his other guests murder them. Yet he acts like it’s nothing. Is this not the first time that his bandit son has tried to murder a houseguest? Tripitaka is shaken by the news, but the old man sneaks them out and falls back asleep without a second thought:

Of course, the bandits give chase, and Wukong kills many. He goes out of his way to identify and behead the son of the old man - then show off the head to Tripitaka. 

Why Wukong would do this, I have no idea. Is this meant to indicate something about Confucianism? Or is it just Wukong’s usual love of homicide? I feel like I might be missing some cultural context.

Tripitaka falls off his horse in fright, yells at Wukong and, as soon as he’s able to stand again, breaks out the band-tightening spell on him. This, to me, is where Tripitaka crosses the line. It’s like he’s performing the Cruciatus Curse:

More than ten times? It's awful.

Now, just a heads up. I was VERY upset that Tripitaka did this, and I wrote a lot about it. But I realise we all have different perspectives. So if you don’t feel like reading a giant essay about why I felt this was so bad, here is a pretty picture of a traditional jiasha for you, and let’s pick up again next week.

Alright, brave reader. Here’s my reaction to Tripitaka’s torture spree.

I’m not saying that it’s inherently wrong to punish somebody for homicide with something along these lines. It would be a very different story if Trikitapa had taken time out, reflected on the whole thing, and soberly decided that it was necessary to do this as a punishment. But it just seems like he’s lost his temper and lashed out.

I think I’m more annoyed with Tripitaka than Wukong, because Wukong has never pretended to be anything other than a fighter and killer. Tripitaka acts like butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth and preaches compassion. Wukong didn’t want to become Buddhist and has only done it under duress. Tripitaka may not have chosen to become Buddhist originally, but he seems to have embraced it pretty enthusiastically. Wukong’s job is to keep Tripitaka alive on the road, so Tripitaka can get to the west - and Wukong is well and truly doing that job, even if Tripitaka doesn’t like the way that he’s doing it.

It’s easy to criticise others and backseat drive. Tripitaka is expecting Wukong to be both a consummate fighter and spiritually precise. Maybe, for Wukong to be the fearless fighter that he is, he needs a certain level of callousness. Wukong goes into situations that nobody else will - again and again. Who says it’s so easy for him to be proportionate when he’s fighting? It’s not always possible to be in two different gears at once. Tripitaka is all too ready to criticise and demand, without ever having walked a mile in Wukong’s shoes.

And Tripitaka seems to expect more of Wukong than Tripitaka expects of himself. Tripitaka hasn’t even tried to learn self-defence. He has not tried to become more well-rounded. Yet he tortures Wukong because, in his eyes, Wukong is not perfect enough or sufficiently well-rounded. I think Tripitaka should have to try to learn the 72 forms himself before he gets to even THINK about using torture on Wukong.

I never expected to find myself defending a killer - even a fictional magic monkey killer. Let me be very clear, I condemn homicide completely. I’m just saying, I think Tripitaka is a prick to use torture here. It was different when he used the band-tightening spell to try to prevent Wukong from killing somebody. That’s fair enough. But using it to lash out is inexcusable.

And it’s totally hypocritical. Tripitaka claims that he’s trying to teach Wukong compassion. It’s like he’s saying, “So help me God, I’ll beat you until you’re more compassionate.” How is that meant to work?

It disturbs me on the level of allegory, too. Like, if Wukong represents the mind-heart, what is this saying? That the mind-heart has to be dominated through force and brutality? Really?

After the band-tightening spell, Wukong begs Tripitaka to use his words, and Tripitaka obliges - saying he doesn’t want Tripitaka as his disciple.

Horrifyingly, Wukong kowtows to the guy who just went full Voldemort on him. I’m gonna say that kowtowing to someone who just tortured you seems like an excess of filial piety. But at least Wukong isn’t getting violent with Tripitaka like Tripitaka just got violent with him.

He begs for an explanation. This is pretty staggering. As wrong as it is for Tripitaka to use the band-tightening spell like this, it should be obvious to Wukong why he’s angry. Wukong clearly hasn’t listened to a word Tripitaka said, and he is a massive jerk for that.

Tripitaka explains (unsurprisingly) that it’s due to all the unnecessary killing, and tells him to get going before he uses the band-tightening spell again. Wukong vanishes.

Oof. Well, that was all very unpleasant. But I certainly want to see how this turns out next week.

@journeythroughjourneytothewest

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Image credits: The usual spiel. The images above are either AI, or random pictures from the web that I’ve modified, or a Frankenstein of both. They are not original. The AI image generation is by Stable Diffusion. The pre-existing images should turn up with reverse googling, but feel free to ask and I’ll dig up sources.