Bad Drivers

    The walk sign had come on. C and I were about to cross the street when C grabbed me by the elbow and pulled me towards him. I was a little annoyed at being grabbed so roughly, but in a second it became clear why he had done so. A car going way too fast had blatantly run the red light. I wasn't looking that direction so I didn't see the speeding car. I was grateful that he had been watching and my annoyance at him was replaced with annoyance at the driver.
  That is one of the few things I don't like about where we live. There seem to be a lot of people who think that stop signs or lights are suggestions to stop, not rules.
  It wasn't the first time I'd had a near death experience on a city street. About 15 years or so ago I was crossing a street. The walk sign was on. I crossed the street and stopped partway through because my hair had blown into my eyes. I paused to push my hair back so I could see. It was a good thing I did because a car had run the red light. If I had kept walking I would have been road kill.
  I just don't get it. Do people truly think that the are entitled to drive however they choose? Are they so important that if they mow down a woman crossing the street (or anyone else for that matter) it's no big deal? Do they think that those lights are just up there for decoration?
  Shortly before C and I were married we were driving in one of the suburbs. We had stopped at a stop sign along a side road and were just pulling out to cross the street when we felt a bump. We both looked behind us to see that a woman in a big SVU had just rear ended us. I was instantly boiling with rage. We were going to be married in less than a month and I already had more stress than I could handle. I was going to get out of that car and give that woman the worst chewing out she ever had. C had caught the look in my eye. He knew what was coming. He was pretty sure he was going to have to physically keep me from smacking that woman silly. He gave me a stern look and said, "I'll handle this. You stay here." It was one of the few times I decided it was best to be obedient.
   It turned out that the woman was on her cell phone and just didn't see the stop sign. Well...that just makes sense. Of course you are just so important that you really must be on your phone instead of paying attention to your driving. I'm sure that call was quite important. It doesn't matter that I will need to replace my bumper because of your carelessness. That's what insurance is for, right?
  While I'm on the subject of bad city drivers I just want to mention the ones that do not pull over when an emergency vehicle comes behind them. I can't count the number of times I've seen an ambulance blocked by some idiot that refuses to get out of the way. It doesn't matter that seconds may count for the person inside. Oh no... the ambulance can wait. After all they have life support equipment in there.
  I shouldn't stereotype city drivers. There are plenty of bad ones in smaller communities too. My first experience with a rude driver was after I'd just got my license. I was driving along when I noticed a funeral procession coming towards me. I knew that if they were behind me I needed to pull over. Since they were not in my lane I wasn't quite sure what to do. It seemed disrespectful to keep going so I pulled over. The car behind me also pulled over. It was a long procession. The car behind me got impatient. The driver honked his horn at me. I sat still respectfully pulled over. A few minutes went by then the car pulled around me. The driver made sure I saw his extended middle finger as he pulled out. I stifled the urge to pull out after him and tail him. I waited until the last car in the procession had passed and then continued on. The other driver didn't have to be so rude. I hadn't blocked him. He had plenty of room.
  The moral of the story? Stop at all red lights and stop signs. Don't talk and drive. Pull over when an emergency vehicle or police car comes speeding your way. Don't flip off someone who is pulled over while waiting for a funeral procession to go by.