Driving

Everybody complains about all the other drivers on the road and how stupid and/or dangerous they are, well except people who live in places like Manhattan who can get by without driving. I'll admit, I probably complain more than average about the dumbass drivers around me and I've done a little offensive driving now and then. Most of the time though, I stick to the speed limit and I try not to drive too late at night, eliminating about 50-60% of the risk of getting into a crash. Driving sober all the time probably raises that up to 75%, but I'm too lazy to do the research on this.

Another thing I do while driving is that if I know I am going to have to stop soon at a red light or a stop sign, I let off the gas and either coast to a slower speed or gently ride the brakes so I stop comfortably behind the car in front of me. I save a little gas and some wear on my brake pads & rotors while still getting to my destination in the same amount of time that any other person on the road would. Seriously, I can't count how many times someone apparently in a terrible rush zooms past me, weaving recklessly through traffic, only for my speed limit-following self to catch up to them a few lights later. From what I've seen, unless you're on the highway and you don't have to worry about traffic, lights or stop signs, going over the speed limit saves you very little if any time. A fast driver might zip through a couple of intersections (maybe even run a few red lights) that I might get stopped at, but it all evens out in the end. The fast driver will eventually slam into the back of a traffic queue waiting at a light or even get pulled over if they're unlucky enough. The peace of mind that comes from not having to worry about speed traps and traffic cops is another benefit of blindly obeying the velocity dictates The Man pushes down our throats.

Speeding on the highway will get you to your destination somewhat quicker, I will admit, but the benefits are limited. On interstates with no towns or other things to get in your way, you can make up some time by leaning on the gas pedal a little more. A driver going 80 MPH can cover a 240-mile trip an hour faster than a driver going 60 MPH. However, the time you waste filling up your gas tank because your fuel milage drops severely erodes the advantages of speeding. This is why I stay in the slow lane and let all the law-breakers have the fast lane to themselves, unless I have to pass a grandma doing 20 under the limit in her Buick. In this respect, I can see the anger some of the faster drivers have towards me is the same as the anger I feel towards granny for tootling along to the early bird special. In my defense, I'm closer to the mean statistical speed of traffic on the road than either grandma or the speed demon, which is the safest way to drive.

In any case, the way I drive tends to piss people off to no end. They'll honk their horns and ride my bumper like I just made a bad joke about their grandmother, but hey, I at least show the old gal a little more respect when I'm caught behind her on the road. If any readers have been offended by me or drivers like me, I just want to say that I'm sorry for whatever I did and that maybe you should try driving like I do for a while. It's much more relaxing and grandma might stop nagging at you for driving so fast.