Since Mike Beebe has done such a nice job picking up the Syaed Ali story for the News—even acknowledging AV’s reporting, for which I thank Mike and the editors who didn’t strike the reference—I’m going to take the day off and instead complain about a problem of my own.

I live on a short, narrow street on the West Side that sees a plow about once a month. I have to traverse similar streets to get out of the cat’s cradle of one-way streets that comprise my neighborhood.

In the last two months, snow and ice have ripped a whole in my muffler and played hell with my transmission. I blame both problems, which I will soon pay plenty to have fixed, on the city’s poor job this year of clearing the streets.

On Friday, right after work, I parked on a very slick and mucky Elmwood Avenue to visit my bank; when I came out, I found someone had sideswiped my car. The damage isn’t too serious, though it surely will prove to be expensive: I can barely open the driver’s door.

There was no note, but that’s fuel for another fire. Absent the driver of the car who slid into my car, I’d like to focus on that part of the blame that fixes on the road conditions. Elmwood Avenue at 5pm on Friday was a wreck. How can that be?

Any lawyer out there who thinks I have a claim against the city, feel free to call. Anyone who wants to join in the suit, there’s plenty of room.