Quickies
May 15, 2003
|
Posted by Aubrey Turner
A few quickies…
- Ladies, picking your nose and examining your finger isn’t terribly attractive. And no, you’re not in a privacy bubble in your driver’s seat. I’m constantly amazed at how people forget that they can be seen by other drivers.
- Driving on a two-lane interstate is a game that must be played several moves ahead. I’m amused by people who get pissed off at me and swerve into the right lane, thinking that they’re going to pass me while I’m in the left lane. What they don’t realize is that I’m not the type to hog the lane, and I wouldn’t be there if I wasn’t passing someone slower. I’m not terribly patient myself, but I’ve learned that you get ahead more easily by staying calm and driving smoothly than you do by being a jerk (and I’ve plenty of experience as Mr. Road Rage™). Most of these hotheads end up getting jammed up behind a slow-moving car in the right lane, because they didn’t think far enough ahead. Besides, it takes too damn much energy to be a hothead.
- I’ve noticed that more women seem to be coming to the range now. That’s a good sign, but it still bothers me that it’s different enough to notice. Maybe someday in the near future this will become a non-issue.
- I passed the Rave Theater in Hickory Creek on the way home and the parking lot was packed to the gills. I guess the new Matrix movie must be raking in cash at a pretty good clip.
Categories: Random Ramblings
Wow, I was myself thinking of making exactly the same rant as your second bullet point earlier today. I really can’t understand what people are thinking, if indeed they are, when they appear not to be paying attention beyond the next car ahead of their front bumper in their own lane, or doing any kind of planning or traffic pattern recognition. Argh.
I definitely understand that. Every Wednesday or Thursday I go to the gun range at Bass Pro Shops in Grapevine. It’s about a 25 mile drive home to Denton from there, with about 19 miles of it on I35E. About three weeks ago I recall this young woman (perhaps 19) in a Pontiac with a UNT sticker on it. The reason I remember her is that she was so upset and so desperately wanted to pass me that she dived for the right lane 7 or 8 times during the drive. Every single time she ended up jammed up behind another car. While she was busy diving over there I had seen that the slowpoke in front of me was about to move over and I would be clear to hit 75 again. She’d have to get behind me again. This went on all the way to Denton. The only time she finally was able to pass me was when I got into the right lane and slowed down in preparation for my exit.
I just realized that that sounds bad, almost like I was intentionally causing her grief, but I really wasn’t. I actually started to feel sorry for her, but then I realized that it was her own damn fault.
Hey, you should hollar when you are so close. At minimum, we could meet up at Bass Pro—don’t need to twist our arms tight to get us to go there (just went there today, in fact).
Texas people drive weird. Sorry, I know you are from here, but it’s the truth.
I have never seen so many people tail gating in my life—and I’ve lived in a lot of places and driven in many more. You can see brake lights for 5 miles up ahead and people will STILL drive and lane change hoping to the first in line to slam on their brakes and stop. You’d think the skeletons of rear ended cars along the side of the road (every single damn day) would eventually clue people in to the fact that waiting until the last minute to slow or stop is a bad thing.
Personally, I don’t think there are enough cops on the highways. I’ve never actually SEEN a cop driving the highways, patrolling traffic. I’ve seen a few parked along the side of the road (maybe three), but I have NEVER seen one on the highway.
Where are they?
You’re right. There are a lot of tailgaters here. I don’t know why that is. I used to be that way, but after a few close calls I decided that I needed to calm down and leave some space.
But if you want to see really bad driving, you should go to one of the smaller cities, like Longview or Tyler. You get a lot of people coming in from the surrounding countryside who aren’t used to driving in cities. It makes for some “interesting” situations.
As for cops, when you get out into the rural areas, Texas is so big that it’s difficult to have enough officers to cover it. I don’t know what the urban areas’ excuses are, though, because I can go for a week without seeing a cop sometimes. Unless the area is a speed trap. Then you’ll see them everyday (*cough* Argyle *cough* Southlake *cough*).
I’ll have to remember to let you know the next time I’m going to be over there. I usually go one day a week with one of my coworkers. I think it’s going to be Thursday this week, but I have to confirm that with him.