I feel maybe now, so close to Christmas, a little reminder is just what the doctor might have ordered, and hopefully, if you get into the habit out of sheer holiday spirit, maybe it will last past the season and you will be set to be nicer, politer, and just overall, more happy with yourself, your drive and with those around you during your commute!
First, in case anyone has forgotten, we will deal with the basics. This is a blinker:
In case you have forgotten, you are supposed to use this to indicate you would like to change lanes or turn. And for the morons who see this, it doesn't mean speed up and close the gap to the car in front of you and not enabling the driver, who was polite enough to notify you of their intent, the opportunity to change lanes. This is the only way a driver can alert the drivers around them of their intent and when you choose to blatantly disregard a blinker or you feel some threat, or maybe you take it personally, you are only increasing the chances you will collide with said driver or cause an accident. When this occurs you haven't gained any advantage. Now you are stuck trying to explain to the other driver and the civil servant why your panties are in a bunch. If you happen to only cause an accident, I hope you know someone saw you and probably got your plate. And for those of you who were smart enough to get that plate, I encourage you to post the info here... http://platewire.com/ Second lesson is regarding the yielding. For those of you who have forgotten people backing up have the right of way. That means when one is attempting to back out of a parking spot, their driveway, or just plain going in reverse (yes, I have been known to do this so I am including it.) other drivers are SUPPOSED to yield. Can you see when you are backing out of a parking spot? I drive a car. Not a big one, not a small one. I live in a suburban town right on top of a massive city. Everyone else seems to have been smarter than me and drive trucks. I can't see over them, I can't see around them, sometimes I can see under them, but when I am backing out of a parking spot, I just can't see you in your small car, big truck, or crossover anxiously looking for a way into or out of the parking lot. For those of you driving through a neighborhood and not heeding the speed limit to begin with, you must remember a drive backing out of their driveway isn't just looking for you. Many of us put the seat belt on right as we are pulling out (I know, not smart, but you all know you are guilty of this, as well). We are also checking, double checking and triple checking to make sure the little kid who lives next door and loves to say "hi" isn't hanging out on the side walk. We are also checking for those less fortunate souls who have to walk everywhere they go. We are doing the look left, look right, and look left again thing (probably several times because we know you will be speeding through the neighborhood).
Their are other places you should yield as well. My favorite has to be getting on and off the freeway. For those of you who need a refresher, this is what a yield sign looks like:
People getting onto the freeway need to remember they have to yield to traffic. However, those of you who feel the need to be rude and not let another driver onto the freeway need to remember you don't live on the freeway and sooner or later, you will need to get off and, more than likely, on again. Exiting the freeway is tricky as well. Those of you who are merging into slower traffic need to remember that yes, you have the "right of way", but don't get off the freeway and expect to immediately fly to the right and pull into that restaurant you were supposed to meet your BFF at 20 minutes ago. Be safe, exit early and make sure you make it to see your BFF.For those of you who feel the need to use your horn, let me remind you it isn't there for you to play your favorite song with. This is not a drum! The horn is a safety devise. It is used as a last ditch effort to alert a fellow driver they are not focused on the task at hand. Not to "yell" at the driver who indicated, well in advance, they were making a lane change into your lane. If you don't like my rear, change lanes. It is rude and obnoxious to lay on your horn because the driver in front of you chose the exact moment the light turned red to look over at their neighbor and wave. Or maybe that was when the babe in front of you got a spec of fluff in their eye and needed to make sure they could see where they were going. Allow your neighbor a moment then provide them with a short, gentle honk.
My favorite rude drivers have to be the ones who love hand gestures. I realize you might be mad. I realize you chose to epitomize the Grinch this year, and I realize maybe you were out of milk that morning, but is this any reason to wave your hands, displaying one or multiple fingers in an attempt to communicate with your neighbor? I hope it makes you feel better to know you just shot the bird at a 16 year old who just started driving 6 weeks ago. Do you feel better knowing that pretty girl who was making fun of you and offended you was only 14? I am sure we are all mature enough to allow a little mistake by one driver pass without having to stoop to junior high school maturity and flash hand signs at people.
One more issue I would like to address...bumper stickers. I love them. Some of them are so creative and each one has their unique expression that perfectly sums up your personality.
Is there some reason we must use profanity?? When my children were growing up, they read the bumper stickers. I always worried I would get stuck behind that immature person who was unable to express themselves intellectually without using profanity. Once I modified a curse word when my child asked what something meant in an effort to shield them from the social disgrace. I realize some of you are shouting Freedom of Speech and by all means, I encourage you to speak. Use your profanity and prove how ignorant you are. Or you could be creative and get your message across intellectually where people will listen to what you have to say. We might even like your bumper sticker so much we buy one of our own and contribute to your cause as well!So fellow drivers, please remember that as you climb into your beautiful ride, your crappy hooptie (that may not actually get you where you are planning to go) that if you set out in the right mood, choose to be a little more patient, and follow the laws of driving, you could make the experience much more enjoyable for yourself, as well as your fellow drivers. Happy driving, and don't forget to way to that nice person who blessed you with the ability to get where you were going a little easier!
