A few weeks ago, I had to go to an appointment about 40km away. This was the first time I’d been out by myself on the roads driving a decent distance in a while.
3 separate times, I saw vehicles in front of me cross to the wrong side of the road, while they were busy doing something.. I could see they were texting or reading something on their mobile phone.
And my car horn is like the horn from a clown car. Nobody takes my beeps seriously. In fact I don’t even think they hear them, it never seems like anyone does. I asked the other half to install me a more serious horn, because these people need a wake up, when they are doing this. If there were cars coming the other way, they could kill someone, even themselves!
There was a time recently, after watching one too many episodes of Crash Investigation Unit, that I found myself sitting in the car, at the end of the driveway, unable to leave the driveway because if I went X way, then Y could happen, and if I went A way, then B could happen. No way seemed safe, and my mind was screaming at me.. don’t go anywhere, put the car away, it is too dangerous on the roads.
And then rational me said err, no, lets’s get going, I have to live life. I need to buy stuff, like chocolate and icecream. I can’t become a hermit and just order my groceries on the internet and never leave home again. But I could see there from where I was. And part of me wanted to do exactly that – become a hermit, stay home where it is safe..
I mean, I could easily do that, Coles and Woolies home deliver here now. But if I let those fears take over, then there will be no end to it. What will be, will be. If I get taken out by an unlicensed idiot driving while texting, I’ll be pissed, sure. And I’ll haunt that person foreverz, because seriously your text couldn’t wait, you couldn’t pull over?
Yeah. I hear you. I can’t drive on Wombeyan caves road as I had an accident due to the other car being on the tong side of the road because “no one drives on this road” bah. I have to park at the end of the tar and get a lift. If I allowed my fear to extend to normal. Roads if not even be able to get to work.
I must start off by saying that is a beautiful lush ‘jungle’ on the photo.
Cell phone use when driving is dangerous and against the law in many countries, but of course some people do not care. I once had a fight with a bus driver in Zambia. He was talking on his cell phone and zigzagging on the road. I had just got on the bus and found other passengers already on, but no one said anything. I told him to either park the bus if the call was really that important or stop using the phone before he killed us – I was not ready to die. He threatened to throw me off the bus (as I had expected) but I stood my ground until he gave in. Other passengers then whispered to me that I had done well because they had also been afraid of having an accident.
I was not interested in their comments because they had been quiet for fear of getting a scolding or beating from the driver and conductor.
I agree. You can’t live your life in fear. We have very little control over what happens in the future, especially when it involves other people. We can only do the best we can.