I was asked this morning if I plan to drive in Cornwall on our upcoming trip. “No,” I said. “We’ll rely on public transportation.” The reason why is that I’m not crazy about driving on the left in congested places, especially if there are lots of roundabouts. Add this to my list of driving fears and irritants.
Another is vehicles ahead that suddenly begin to slow down and move erratically for no apparent reason. If I have a chance to pass them, 9 times out of 10 the drivers are on cell phones.
I hate it when I’m approaching an exit ramp and suddenly a car from two lanes over accelerates and the driver, who clearly decided at the last minute to leave the highway, speeds up, dangerously jumps over one or more lanes, and veers in front of me to take that exit.
I get irritated by drivers ahead of me loping along well under the speed limit, especially on 2-lane streets and roads. Often I’m not the only one in a procession that quickly seems like a funeral cortége. Again, if I get a chance to pass the car or camper and glare at the driver, he often seems completely unaware of the hold-up he is causing. I say “he” because it’s almost always a HE at the wheel.
More than once, Ruth & I have been cut off by truck drivers who suddenly decide that they have to be in the lane we are in. Usually they want to pass another huge truck. As if we aren’t there, they move in front of us without warning. We were recently on the road in Illinois and saw two huge transport trucks blown over by heavy winds. THAT was a first! Life as a truck driver can’t be getting easier.
Poor or supposedly clever signage drives me crazy as does lack of street signs in unfamiliar places, especially small towns. GPS can often make these problems go away. However, GPS is not always tracking my destination and can be wrong. I worry about the era of self-driving cars that’s rapidly approaching.
I get frustrated by inadequate parking near high-traffic destinations and attractions. Last year we didn’t get to revisit Jerome, Arizona, because there simply was no place to put our rental car. We went on.
And this last one is a relatively new phenomenon and irritant. I’m heading down a road and see warning lights in the distance. I assume I’m about to encounter an ambulance on its way to a hospital or a sheriff pursuing a speeder, but when I get nearer I realize it’s a utility truck or non-emergency vehicle flashing those lights.
Hank
