Re-Post: I Am A Lane Blocker

As some of you may recall, I recently posted about teamwork and how I love to see people come together for a cause. Today's cause that I am excited to talk about is "lane blocking". What is lane blocking? It's something we all have either done or wished we had done when we get stuck in traffic. Let me paint the picture:

Here you are, tooling along on your way to work, making excellent time, thinking about how you will definitely be there before your boss today. The windows are rolled down, the birds are chirping, the air is crisp and refreshing, today is a good day. All of a sudden, you come to a complete stop. A stop that seems to last a lifetime. You try to see around the gigantic truck in front of you with no luck. You see the people in the lane to your right, flying by, as if they are privileged to not have to get stuck where you are. You think, "I want to be like them, I want to go!" No luck, they are driving as if they are in the Indy 500, not allowing you in, leaving you stuck with exhaust from the truck in front of you. So, you sit, and eventually are able to move forward. As you do this, you realize that your once excited, happy mood has been replaced by an anxious, frustrated one. "I am going to be SO late!", you think. As you move forward, you notice a merge sign up ahead, stating that everyone is merging into your lane. Now, I think you understand where I am going with this, right? The mean people, who flew by with no regard to anyone else, they saw this sign and knew that they would not wait as long as you. They wiggle their way into the front of the line, in front of everyone else who has waited their turn.

I don't know about you, but this really chaps my hide! But wait, there is a happy ending:

Take the above example, except I am the driver, stuck behind the truck. One day, I saw a woman in front of me start to head into that right lane, the one that was going to have to merge. As she attempted her journey, I thought, "Where is she going, doesn't she know that she is going to have to get over? Figures!" But to my surprise, she ended up sitting half way into the next lane, but just enough to ward off any passers. "Wow," I thought, "She is fighting back! She is the protector of all good and is here to help us!" I immediately put my car in the same position and noticed others following suit. At that time, I felt proud to be a part of such teamwork! And today, I was the fearless leader, watching others back me up. What a great feeling! Oh, by the way, I got to work before my boss.

I Love When We All Work Together

During my morning commute, which is very long I might add, I drive with a bunch of idiots! I know, it's a mean thing to say, but it's true. They tailgate, drive with excessive speed, drive too slow, can't stay in their own lane, etc. I know you know who I am talking about. However, there are times that I don't feel this way.

There is a bridge that I drive down, and like anyone traveling down a hill, my car tends to go a little faster. At the end of this bridge, there is a hiding place that our local law enforcement love to sit, and wait for speeders. When I say a hiding place, it really is a hiding place for the traffic going in my direction. I think the cop actually backs himself/herself into this spot so as to not be seen. Luckily, my fellow commuters coming from the other direction can still see the car.

So, every now and then, as I am coasting down the hill, I see a driver flash his/her headlights at me and it reminds me to be careful. When this happens, it restores good feelings about my fellow drivers - I love when we all work together!!!!!

Crazy News

Did you hear about the 8-year old boy who drove his father's van into a tree?

This alone sounds a little crazy, but it gets better.

On February 8, 2009, in Sarasota, FL an 8-year old boy and his 34-year old father were driving along and the boy ran into a tree with the van that he was driving. When officers arrived at the scene, the father was asked to get out of the vehicle. As he was reaching for his driver's license, he fell to the ground and landed on his face. He told the officers that he was feeling woozy and didn't want to drive so he asked his son to drive. He later stated that he wanted to have a bonding moment with his son.

When officers spoke to the 8-year old boy, they got a different story. The boy claimed that his father took some "liquid medicine" in order to feel better. He then pointed to an empty bottle of Canadian Whiskey in the vehicle.

The father was arrested on child endangerment.

Can you believe this story?

We discussed it at dinner the other night with our 8-year old son. Of course, he was hoping we would say HE could drive now, but we quickly put an end to that idea.

Danifers Daily Commute: Volume 4

As I sit at the red light, waiting for time to pass, I notice someone running along the side of the street. This is not your normal "exercise" runner, but someone running to or from something. I begin to take note that the runner is trying to catch up to the public bus that is beginning to shut it's doors. I watch as the sprinter puts forth more effort to reach his destination. As he sees the bus begin to move slightly, as if to tease, the runner attempts to yell at the bus as if the driver will hear him. He then feverishly waves his hands, as he is running, to get the drivers attention. I hope he does not fall. As I watch this display, I wish there was something I could do. What if I honk my horn, would the bus take an extra moment before pulling away from the curb? Could this extra moment allow the runner to make it in time? Sadly, I watch the bus drive away as the deflated sprinter still continues to run after the bus, in hopes that he might have a chance.

Poor runner.

Danifer's Daily Commute Vol. 3

This week, I have noticed during my commute that I see many of the same people, day in and day out, while I am traveling to and from work. I wanted to give a shout out to:

1. The boy on the bike every morning who wears his helmet, but never straps it on. Do you REALLY think you are going to be protected? And does your mom know you are not wearing your helmet the right way?

2. The "marathon man" who runs up and down the road waving to people. This man has to be about 80 years old but is out every morning running his little legs off and waving as if he is being watched by crowds of people cheering him on.

3. The scary motorcycle guy who wears a bandanna on his face that looks like a skeleton.

4. The woman and her 3 kids that are always waiting at the bus stop. I feel a sense of guilt as I drive by in my car and realize how lucky I am to be able to drive my kids to where they need to go.

5. The old, Chevy truck guy who I see every morning heading in the opposite direction. He drives a big, grey primer odd shaped truck.

6. The little old man on his bicycle, wearing his helmet (properly attached, I might add) who rides his bike in the middle of the intersection in front of the college.

7. The two "mobster look-alike" crossing guards who look like they are doing their community service.

8. The man and his daughter who wait for the bus to go home every day after work. They look happy and he looks like a good dad to have.

9. The couple who ride down the streets, hand-in-hand on their little rascals.

10. And lastly, the homeless man who lays on the ground at the bus stop by my work.

Are there people you see often who would stand out in your mind?

Danifer's Daily Commute - Vol. 2

Welcome back to The Daily Commute. When I started this series, I thought of all these interesting things to write about. After the first post, it seemed like I drew a blank. But today, I want to just let you all know about something cool that has been popping up all over Arizona.

Throughout the cities that I travel through during my daily commute, I have noticed that at certain intersections, they have done something to help everyone. Of course, we have had RED LIGHT cameras put on a lot of corners where accidents are known to happen. These were put up to discipline drivers who were running red lights. This was done with the hope that drivers would be inconvenienced by having to pay a fine and realize that to avoid this, all they have to do is slow down and stop on red. This is a safety measure that IS necessary. However, as a driver, it can stress you out. Do you drive really fast just to get through before you think the light will turn red? Do you drive really slow and upset everyone behind you? I have often found myself feeling quite anxious when I approach a red light camera.

Instead of simply punishing people, the city has decided to help alleviate the problem by making flashing, crosswalk signs do a "count-down". If you are not familiar with what I am talking about, take a look at this picture:



Not only do pedestrians have an idea how much time they have to get across the street, but so do drivers who want to try to avoid running a red light. I think that the use of these crosswalk count-downs are excellent and a really great idea. I have noticed that the majority of them are right on, but others are not calibrated correctly and do not always coincide with the red light. I think that if they are maintained and working properly, they are a wonderful addition to our cities.

Do you have these in your city? What do you think about them?

Introducing Danifer's Daily Commute - Vol. 1

I have found that I have a lot to say about traffic, driving, idiot drivers and various topics associated to my daily commute to and from work. In keeping with that trend, I will have a post series titled, "Danifer's Daily Commute". Don't worry, I will not post everyday about my frustrations with driving, I am sure that you have your own. I am writing this series in hopes that we can get through traffic together and express our feelings about it and possibly have a laugh or too as we relate to others' stories.

These are the top 8 things that bother me the MOST about driving/drivers:

1. Tailgating - It's not nice and it really upsets people. If you need to drive fast, go around. If you can't go around, try to pass when safe.

2. People who do not use their turn signals - Every car should be equip with them, why can't you use them? It just takes a second and it allows others to know what you are about to do.

3. The carpool lane and fast drivers - The carpool lane was made to reward drivers who transport other drivers and/or who ride motorcycles. This was not made to be the SUPER FAST, INDY 500 lane!

4. Waiting to get out into traffic - When I am waiting to make a right-hand turn and looking at the flow of traffic, as soon as I notice it is safe to go into a lane, I expect to go. Instead, someone from another lane sees the opening and switches right as I am getting ready to enter the traffic. Ugh!!!

5. Stand-still traffic

6. Never-ending construction

7. Merging, see my post about me being a lane blocker.

8. Slowing down coming toward a light - the person slows down as they approach the intersection just enough to get themselves through in time and once the light turns yellow, I am forced to run the light.

What about you? What bugs you.......?

I am a Lane Blocker

As some of you may recall, I recently posted about teamwork and how I love to see people come together for a cause. Today's cause that I am excited to talk about is "lane blocking". What is lane blocking? It's something we all have either done or wished we had done when we get stuck in traffic. Let me paint the picture:

Here you are, tooling along on your way to work, making excellent time, thinking about how you will definitely be there before your boss today. The windows are rolled down, the birds are chirping, the air is crisp and refreshing, today is a good day. All of a sudden, you come to a complete stop. A stop that seems to last a lifetime. You try to see around the gigantic truck in front of you with no luck. You see the people in the lane to your right, flying by, as if they are privileged to not have to get stuck where you are. You think, "I want to be like them, I want to go!" No luck, they are driving as if they are in the Indy 500, not allowing you in, leaving you stuck with exhaust from the truck in front of you. So, you sit, and eventually are able to move forward. As you do this, you realize that your once excited, happy mood has been replaced by an anxious, frustrated one. "I am going to be SO late!", you think. As you move forward, you notice a merge sign up ahead, stating that everyone is merging into your lane. Now, I think you understand where I am going with this, right? The mean people, who flew by with no regard to anyone else, they saw this sign and knew that they would not wait as long as you. They wiggle their way into the front of the line, in front of everyone else who has waited their turn.

I don't know about you, but this really chaps my hide! But wait, there is a happy ending:

Take the above example, except I am the driver, stuck behind the truck. One day, I saw a woman in front of me start to head into that right lane, the one that was going to have to merge. As she attempted her journey, I thought, "Where is she going, doesn't she know that she is going to have to get over? Figures!" But to my surprise, she ended up sitting half way into the next lane, but just enough to ward off any passers. "Wow," I thought, "She is fighting back! She is the protector of all good and is here to help us!" I immediately put my car in the same position and noticed others following suit. At that time, I felt proud to be a part of such teamwork! And today, I was the fearless leader, watching others back me up. What a great feeling! Oh, by the way, I got to work before my boss.