I'm not sure exactly what gives me this idea, but I'm rapidly coming round to thinking that the vast majority of people in this country have a complete lack of driving skills.
The other day I was sitting in the passenger seat of Jen's car heading for Heanor (a town approximately 7 miles from where I live) to pick up Jen's brother Ralph. He had been stranded in this particular hell-hole waiting for a bus so that he could come and spend the evening with us. We arranged to pick him up from the local Tesco supermarket (incedentally, have you noticed how Tesco is now 'The Place To Betm' for your local swarm of Chavs?) and headed straight from work, already mildly stressed.
The traffic was bad going down the A38. Backing up as it generally tends to around the three roundabouts we have to circumnavigate along the way. I'm not sure whether it was the sun or the relatively warm temperature, but everyone seemed exponentially more impatient than normal, and the regular troop of drivers pushing their way from one lane to another to try to reduce their waiting time were in unusually high volume. Several times we had to brake as someone forced their way between us and the vehicle in front, often without warning.
We made it as far as the Little Eaton island without any significant harm. At this point i the journey, you can either continue straight on along the A38 (a dual carriageway) or turn left towards Little Eaton itself and then head through Kilburn, Horsley Woodhouse and Smalley before reaching Heanor. Anticipating that the latter would be the nicer, quieter, less risky route, we turned left.
So far so good. The traffic had thinned, and the constant change between 50mph and 30mph meant that drivers had no choice but to keep their speed in check. However, things were about to take a turn for the insanely annoying.
Trundling along at a merry 50mph along one of the quicker stretches of road just outside Kilburn we noticed a car, a silver estate, pull to the end of a junction on the left about 300m further on. I expected him to just pull right out, ignoring the fact that we were tanking along. But he didn't. At least not at first. 200m in front - he's still waiting. 150m in front - pulling out now would be a really dumb idea. Still no sign though. No. Then, with 100m (or about 2 or 3 seconds) to go until we're level with him, he starts to move.
Brake pedal goes down, horn is sounded. Lots. Kudos to Jen for her reactions and her willingness to make this fool completely aware that he is feet away from death. The driver, a fat 50-something man, then becomes aware of us and accelerates rapidly. With our horn still sounding, we pretty much come to a dead stop. This dude then responds to our outburst by (get this) taking both hands away from the wheel and waving in a highly jovial manner. Very funny < /sarcasm >. Needless to say, he got the triple deuce.
Like an omen, there then followed a whole series of suicidal drivers, cyclists and pedestrians, all hellbent on having there blood spilled onto the bonnet of Jen's little Renault 5. Argh.
Anyway, after calming lots, and with the added hilarity Ralph always brings with him, we finished up having a nice relaxing evening. We ate Cheps and watched Family Guy and Green Wing, then settled down for a good night's sleep.
But why? Why are there so many idiots around? I know how frustrating it can be to come across someone travelling painfully slow when you're late for work, but what's with the car owners who seem intent on driving over your car from behind just because they want to go faster?
I heard a while ago about a proposal the government had to begin retesting drivers every 10 years and quite frankly I welcome the idea. Take away the licenses of all the morAns out there who don't know the meaning of the word consideration. It would certainly cut down the number of cars smogging the world up, anyway. Shame nobody seems to have done anything with the notion.
Anyway, rant over. I've made a mental note to be more tolerant of these motorists who have evidently generously donated a significant part of their brain to some research organization or other.
*
On an unrelated point, we took my Mum (Julie) and my sister (Rach) for a meal last night to say thank you for helping us with some work that needed doing, and had a really, really nice time. I think sometimes I forget how enjoyable it is to just spend some quality conversation time with friends and loved ones. The combination of good food and good company was just what I needed.
Yiamas!
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About Me
- QuakeDisruptor
- Belper, Derbyshire, United Kingdom
- QuakeDisruptor began life as a mindless drone, much like everyone else, I guess. Not so much born as dragged kicking and eating into the world by his loving mother and despicable father. From an early age, he knew that he was unique, that he was different from other children. He was special in one striking and insignificant way - nothing was special about him, which was, er, special. This talentless state gave him an instant advantage over other children in that his lack of excellence allowed him to pass unnoticed by just about everyone important. Because he was so mediocre, and because he was average at everything he reluctantly turned his hand to, nobody asked anything of him. A pretty easy lifestyle as you can see. But things were set to change. Upon maturity, or what could be considered maturity, at least, QD decided that his humble existence needed a shot in the flabby, unused arm. His atrophied life began to spin wildly into control, and he honed his skilless skill into something darker. He would no longer fall short of the mark, no longer delight people around him with disappointment. Instead he would show them that nothing, absolutely nothing, was out of his reach...