So I was driving home last night (carpooling

with my wife) when we came to a stop light

and were in the left lane to go straight.

Unfortunately, there was a long line and we

just blocked the entrance to the left turn

lane that was right next to us. I pulled up

as far as I could to the giant truck in front

of us. One van desperately wanted to go left,

so they drove up on the curb. Whatever, I

thought, you can ruin your car for 30 seconds

if you want. Next, some guy in an moldy old

Trans AM pulls up behind me and can't get

through (won't go over the curb). I can't

move up any further. He starts revving his

engine, presumably to make me move. Did I

mention it was obvious I had nowhere to go?

So both lights then turn green, the truck in

front of me is slow, so theres not enough

time for him to make the left turn signal.

Instead, totally pissed off, he guns it,

and swerves around behind me. I think he's

gonna make a U-turn, but no, he pulls up next

to me and starts glaring and gesturing.

I speed up and move far away, and he pulls up

and matches speed. I think this guys

trying to start something and I don't want

to get in an altercation, so I make

a hard left across the expressway and enter

some residential streets. He couldn't follow

since we were going pretty fast and he

was in the right lane.



I was afraid he was gonna smash me or try to

follow me somewhere where I couldn't evade

him. What an *******.



I mean, what are people thinking?



Sigh.



-Chris

 

You're right, a lot of people really are idiots. I used to often respond in kind with middle fingered salutes and the like, but now I *usually* just let it go.

Chances are that guy is...

a. A lot dumber than you.
b. A lot poorer than you.
c. Less emotionally stable than you.
d. Has a screwed up personal and/or professional life.
e. Owns a POS, and is jealous of your fancy little German sports car.

I could go on, but you get the idea. I won't lie and say that no one ever gets my goat, but mostly I either ignore them, or smile and wave. It's a lot less stressful than road rage, and it's hard to get too upset at someone who's waving at you in a friendly way.

Sounds like you handled it fine though.

 

That is the only explanation that I can come up with..no wait another is that their acorn sized brains can't ingest then comprehend what is happening beyond their 10 foot radius of vision.


I am pretty sure that we all run into these idiots at least once a day. My run-in-of-the-day was ...

I was hanging out with my son and some neighbor's kids (2-7 years in age) in front of their house when this idiot in a minivan drives by swerving all over the 2 lane residential road while shouting obscentities out the window. Next to this road is a playground and homes. All of the kids stopped in their tracks, stared at the idiot and looked very scared. I only wish I had a better angle of the road to get his tag number to file a complaint.

 

Brad I like your list...I run through that sometimes when people act like idiots

 

with 14 rounds of 147 grain subsonic hollow points. Come follow me....please.

 

I see you're from FL, but are you a Texan at heart? :-)

 

. . . for staying calm, cool and collected in traffic: Pretend the other cars are cows.

"What?", you say. "That doesn't make any sense".
Oh, but it does and here's why.

Have you ever walked throgh a field full of cows? (If not just use your imagination). Cows are dumb animals that are often prone to erratic behavior for no discernible reason. Sometimes they get in front of you and move really slow. Other times they kick up their heels and run really fast right at you, occasionally they sneak up real close behind you when you aren't paying attention.

Get the idea? The best thing to do around cows is watch them carefully, don't make any sudden moves and keep in mind that, more often than not, they're going to do something dumb, so it's best to just stay out of their way as much as possible and they'll eventually move on.

Also, and I had to learn this the hard way, if a cow does something stupid (like cut you off on the entrance ramp) it does absolutely no good to try and teach the cow a lesson. If they were smart enough to learn from their mistakes they would be better drivers (I mean cows) by now.

Just a little mental game I play to keep my blood pressure down."

 

That may be the post of the DAY!!!! Bravo!!!!!

 

I'm glad you handled that in a calm, logical fashion. Remember, those people will be in the news one day as either victims of crashes or causes of them.

Stay safe... : )

 

Bwa ha ha ha ha ha