Car-nage

Today marks a milestone for me. I was overtly rude to someone, as in said just about everything I wanted to say and punctuated the sentence by rolling my eyes and walking away.

We have an innate inability, despite their own obvious share of the blame, to deny it’s ever our fault. I’m guilty but at least I am aware of it. I pulled into the grocery store parking lot Saturday morning and drove around a white truck that looked like it was parked at the curb. He’d been still for much longer than it takes to stop at the myriad of stop signs in this particular strip so I passed him at a reasonable speed to the left.

I didn’t think anything of it as I tooled on down to Safeway and pulled into a spot. As I was getting out of the car, I saw a large white truck stop blocking in my car out of the corner of my eye. I got out and as I was going to lock the door, he spoke to me.

“You need to be careful.”

“Excuse me?”

“I said you need to be careful in the parking lot, I almost hit you back there.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah I almost turned right into you.”

“Ok, but your signal wasn’t on and you were parked.”

“I have my son with me so you need to be careful.”
*sigh* Like I didn’t even say anything, time to disengage.

“I’m sure he’s precious. I guess you’ll use your signal from now on.”

I don’t think that was the answer he wanted because as I ended the conversation (period = rolling my eyes and walking away) he was still running his mouth. He was still talking to my back me as I locked my car door and strolled inside.

It felt wrong, but at the same time if I have learned nothing it’s that people don’t change. Even if he had hit me, he wouldn’t have taken the worst of the damage. If anything, having your kid with you is even more reason to be careful, not double park at curbs and check your mirror when you are pulling out.

But what gets me is that I know I drive in a way that is… assertive. That morning it was before 10:00AM, I had not had my coffee and for once I was just driving. Not weaving, not speeding, not vying for pole position, just driving. And on the day that I am just driving, I get yelled at for not being careful??

It’s like “What? You can’t just follow me home like the psychopath you are and yell at me then for something worth yelling at me about?” Christ.