I am not a religious man by any means, and yet I find myself saying a little prayer every time I get in my car. Everyone says they are great drivers, but with so many bad drivers out there I find that quite of few of you are lying. There isn’t a day that goes by that I’m not just inches and seconds away from being in some kind of a car accident.
Take today for example. I was driving down Hillsboro on my way home this morning when a guy driving a pickup truck decided he didn’t want to yield while coming off the interstate. The best part was, not only did he not hit the brakes, he didn’t even look over into my lane to see if it was clear nor did he even react while I was laying on my horn when he forced me out of my lane.
This type of shit happens all of the time and it seems to be getting worse. I just don’t understand why people are completely apathetic when it comes to the safety of themselves and others around them. Do they think because they are in a car they won’t get hurt? I assure you they are DEAD wrong. On average there are more that 6 million motor vehicle accidents per year with more than a third of them resulting in serious and permanent injuries. And fatalities, you ask? Oh, well that’s just a mere 35,000 or so a year. That’s 35,000 families that have lost a loved one most likely due to a lack of common sense.
Not a day passes that I don’t see people driving down the road with their heads down, looking at their phones while they are oblivious to whats happening around them. To be completely honest, I have been guilty of this as well. In my defense, I have been working on breaking that dangerous habit by using the hands-free voice commands on my phone.
Texting is just a part of the ongoing issues we face on the road. We have to deal with drunk drivers, parents tending to kids, dogs in driver’s laps, immature idiots trying to race, and just about another million reasons why its unsafe to drive anymore. Its sad that we have all seen the effects of being distracted while driving and yet it seems we all just don’t care.
This post was supposed to be written to bitch and moan about horrible drivers, but now I feel like it should be a plea to you all. I beg you all from the bottom of my heart to pay attention while your driving. Keep in mind that you are not the only person to be effected by your bad decisions. Please remember that there are families out there that don’t want to lose their loved ones because you are too self absorbed to realize there are other people on the road.
In closing:
Talkin' Shit 
I have been trying! I also had to break the horrible texting habit but when a car crossed the yellow line and almost hit me head on at 60mph I knew I just had to stop because I knew why that car had crossed into my lane… all because of a shitty text message that probably only said something like “TY!” or “pick up milk” it should have said “eyes on the road asshole!”
I definitely had some really close calls too. I remember one instance where I was texting driving down an interstate doing about 75mph and almost hit a guardrail. If it wasn’t for those groove things on the road that alert you that you are crossing into the shoulder I would have hit the guardrail for sure. It was a real wake up call.
You live in Miami, right? CRAZY driving from what I’ve heard… I am so against any form of phone in the car (actually, I hate cell phones for many, many, many reasons). I also wonder how people can be so blasé about driving – do they think 170 lbs of body is comparable to the weight of a car? or a freakin’ SUV (don’t get me started on car size). I’d rather bike every where or go back to horse & carriage. But seems that no one is asking my opinion…bastards.
Not exactly Miami. I am about 25 minutes North but let me assure you, the driving here isn’t any better. I would bike too if I wasn’t so worried a car would jump the curb and take me out all together. I really want to move out to the woods and never drive again.
I’m with you on that…luckily, central Tucson is bike-friendly –
I’m amazed at all the stuff some people get done while “driving.” I was in a car service to the airport the other day and the driver not only texted constantly, he also (when I asked him to stop texting)served himself a complicated meal that involved pouring and mixing. Yeah, we swerved, but he had it “under control” with a free elbow.
Thanks for the follow, and great post!
Thank you very much for the comment!
A couple of days after writing this I was forced off the road into a grassy area because 2 cars decided to stop in the middle of the road and chat. It was right on a bend in the road and I didn’t see them there till it was too late. Luckily it wasn’t that bad and I wasn’t too badly hurt, but it amazes me how little people think when they get behind the wheel.
We’re bike friendly here in Grand Rapids, Michigan. And texting while driving is illegal here, and enforced.
Here’s one video that I actually DO love. My little town won a Lip Dub contest! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPjjZCO67WI&feature=BFa&list=FL_tFG_GElone3FH_Hm8bVVw
I couldn’t agree more. I’ve been in 3 accidents in my driving lifetime – none caused by me. 2 of them I was actually sitting at a red light and got rear-ended. The 3rd was the worst due to a negligent driver. Semi-truck driver, at that. I have truck drivers in my family so I know where to be so they can clearly see me in my little car (at the time). This driver never looked before turning on his blinker and coming straight into my lane. I tried hard to hurry and get in front of him, but unfortunately he did a pit-maneuver (basically) on me and I went in front of him sideways where he ended up pushing me into the median where my car flipped nose over end. I was 27 wks pregnant with my 3 step children in the back. Thankfully, we all escaped with minor bruising. I now pay extra attention to what I THINK the other drivers might/might not do. And I will not ride next to a truck if I don’t have to.
Ok sorry so long, just felt the need to share. 🙂