I was RIGHT!!!!!!!

It seems like every few weeks or so I have something to say about driving. Since my work commute (50+ minutes each way per day) is a big part of my day it only makes sense that I'd get inspired to blog about it on occasion. Today is that day.

Part of my drive consists of traveling on a three-lane interstate (i.e. three lanes going each direction). The posted speed limit is 55 mph. This morning, I was in the right lane--let me stress that again: THE RIGHT LANE. This means that there were two, perfectly good lanes to the left of me. I was going 60 mph. If you fancy yourself a student of jurisprudence, then you probably realized that I just willingly admitted to a driving infraction. Now, did I mention that I was in the RIGHT LANE? That's going to be important later on.

So, I'm in the RIGHT LANE going FIVE MILES AN HOUR OVER THE SPEED LIMIT and Mr. Black Ford SUV pulls up behind me (this is the RIGHT LANE in case I didn't mention it). Apparently, I'm not going fast enough for him. The normal reaction in a situation like this would be to turn on your left turn signal, look for oncoming traffic, and then move over to pass in the middle lane (since I was in the RIGHT LANE). However, Mr. Black Ford SUV must have just gotten off a plane from Germany where he was driving on the Autobahn--where there is no speed limit and you indicate your desire to pass by flashing your lights or bright lights at the person in front of you. But wait, I'm pretty sure that even in Germany where people drive really fast (amazingly, they do this safely) they also understand that the RIGHT LANE is where the slower cars drive.

I'm used to people tail-gating me and it's not because I'm one to drive really slow. It's just become accepted in our country that everyone is in so much of a hurry that they don't think about the dangers or riding six inches behind another vehicle while traveling at speeds in excess of 60 m.p.h. Even though I'm used to it, I still don't like it--but I'm willing to let it go without getting upset (within reason). But since Mr. Black Ford SUV decided to flash his lights at me, I was livid. Someone please tell me what it was that I was supposed to do?!?

I'll tell you what I did--I put my arms in the air to indicate, "what am I supposed to do?" His response was to get REALLY MAD. Perhaps now would me a good time for me to point out that I was in the RIGHT LANE. I couldn't move over to the right so he could pass. That's the shoulder of the road and is used for emergencies. This will be helpful to understanding the story. Anyway, he popped into the left lane (didn't use the turn signal) and pulled up beside me. Then, to show his approval, he gave me a simple hand gesture to let me know that I was the "#1" driver. How cool is that?

Arrrrrrrrrgggggggggghhhhhhhh!