Thought of the Week:

Seatbelt..... check.....
Mirrors set.... check.....
Music at appropriate level.... check....

Paying attention to the road..... um....

Driving home from work this afternoon I witnessed what seemed to be the most hilarious wreck I have ever seen... and it involved three cars. Traffic gets a little backed up on U.S. 193 at Highway 89 every day around 3:00. Hill AFB shift change, school gets out, and every day traffic helps to congest this traffic light. As I am sitting in traffic just humming along to the radio.... when I say humming I really mean violently "singing" along in an awful off pitch, out of tone manner that would make the deaf tell me to shut the heck up..... but its my car and I can sing as terrible as I want.

Anyway, there I am karaokeing away and a black Hyundai is sitting between the south bound exit lane and the flow of traffic, headed to the north bound exit lane. The guy, mid thirties gives me the you just got busted singing smirk, and a raise of the fingers off his window seal. I wave hello...... and his car all of a sudden jerks forward about two feet. He had just been struck by another vehicle.... It seemed as if everything was OK. I pulled off to the side of the road to see if everyone was OK..... also to get that menacing good deed out of the way for this month.

As I was talking to the guy in the black Hyundai the driver of the other car, a silver Honda Civic walks up to the guys car...... I almost burst out laughing in her face. She was obviously not paying attention to the road from the... well... the mascara smeared up one of her eyes and side of her forehead. Seriously..... it was great. I could see that I was just in the way and of no real use in the situation anyhow, so I walked back to the Jeep to head on my way.... and another car, white, with a female driver, drives right into the back of the mascara woman's car. Now, not only is her front end smashed in, but the trunk is now located in her back seat. Her Civic has become much more compact. I laughed and laughed, got into the Jeep and headed home.

This little story has preceded my thought but offers some brief background into the reasoning behind it....

A car is many things, it is a transporter, it will take you to where you need to go.

A car can be used as a shelter from the elements and harsh mood swings of mother nature.

A car can be used as a substitute for things lacking in ones life... to compensate if I may.

A car is also a less popular, but realistic sign of stature even if we don't want to accept it.

BUT...

A car is not to be used as an all purpose, one stop shopping, I'll do my makeup, read a tabloid, talk on my cell phone, eat some fast food, and wash it all down with a diet coke AND DRIVE machine ...

A car is a weapon of somewhat mass destruction... Please please ... watch the road... please.