Change of Temperament

I have been driving the speed limit (more or less) for about ten months. It's been a struggle, but I feel like I am finally getting more comfortable sticking to the speed limit with people on my tail. I still get anxious when someone comes up right behind me, but I no longer have a desire to speed up. If I am in the right lane or the only lane, it is right, and it is my right, to drive the speed limit. The only time I feel I should go faster is when I am sitting in the left lane. I don't do this intentionally, but sometimes I am making a left turn or actually have to pass someone or enter a road from the left. But under normal driving conditions, I have no interest in speeding up and sitting on my tail, flashing your lights, honking your horn, or gesturing me will not convince me to go faster.

No Break with a Bike

I took my car in for an oil change this morning. I knew it would be a long wait so brought my bike to bike to my office a mile and a half away. I had to drive to my office first to drop off some stuff so I took my usual route. Foolishly, I thought that having a bike on the back of my car would signal people to back off. It wasn't so. Three separate people rode my bike-laden tail. The last was as close as any tailgater ever is.

Tag-Team Tailgating

This morning, about half-way to work, a woman in a white Toyota minivan came speeding up behind me and glued herself to my tail. After about 5 minutes of this, she whizzed past me, crossing the double-yellow line. This is actually one spot where a dashed line might have worked because visibility was pretty good. As soon as she got by, an exasperated many in a gray Nissan sedan took up the cause and glued himself to my tail. He displayed the typical tailgating behavior with the exasperated expression, the hands in the air with the "Come on and speed up!" gesture, etc. He followed me most of the rest of the way to work. I felt like the woman in the minivan passed me and said to him, "Tag, you're it."

Tailgated by Propane

This morning, I was tailgated by a propane truck. At first, it doesn't seem scarier than most tailgating, but the likelihood of a worst case scenario seemed so incredibly high. Is there such as thing as a minor accident with a propane truck?

Don't Talk with Your Hands

I was driving home this afternoon followed by another yo-yo tailgater. This time I could tell why she was a yo-yo: she had a cell phone in one hand, and she was talking with her other hand. Every couple of seconds, she took her free hand off the steering wheel to gesture to the person on the phone. She was so distracted that I watched as she nearly missed her exit and had to cut across the wide area between the highway and the exit area to get to the exit at the last second.

Happy Truck

I'm driving on my 40 m.p.h. road with a black Toyota SUV on my tail. I rarely have too much trouble on that road because the limit is 40, but it seems like it could be less. Then, I turn onto my 30 m.p.h stretch and the lady in the SUV turns as well. Now, I know I'm in for some serious tailgating. But, wait, what's that up ahead? It's a big dump truck averaging 25-28. I just get a big smile on my face because now I don't have to worry about annoying the lady in the SUV. It's not my fault; I can't go any faster.

Something Nice

Usually, I talk about all the idiots who follow too close and then flip me off for driving the speed limit, but today I'll mention someone nice. Last night on my way home, I was stuck in the right lane with my left turn coming up soon. There was actually a car in the left lane going slower than the speed limit (and a car in the right lane only going slightly faster) so the cars were lined up behind it. I was trying to find an opening to get over and slowing down to try to let the cars on the left get by, but nothing worked. Finally, I turned on my blinker without any hope, and big truck flashed his lights and let me in. It was a wonderful gesture and very much appreciated. It was a great reminder to be nice and drive calmly.