Why are you in such a hurry?

Why are you in such a hurry?  Why didn't you leave your house 10 minutes earlier?  Are you really that much more important than every other human out this morning/afternoon/evening?  Do you not have any respect for those around you?  You realize that the vehicle you are driving is a big piece of machinery that could very well kill you and everyone else around you?

These are things that I ask myself daily in the car.  I read somewhere a few weeks ago that Knoxville is ranked high for safe driving and if I had been taking a sip of anything to drink then I would have spit it across the room.  Drivers here are terrible.  Nope, we aren't Atlanta but we do have some pretty hostile drivers that always seem to be running late and in a hurry to get where they are going.

I found out two days last week that I should not drive during morning rush hour.  Ever.  Trying to merge onto I-640 from Western Avenue is apparently the most insulting thing a person could do to all of those other people already on I-640.  And, once you actually merge onto I-640, getting into the far left lane to go downtown is a nightmare.  People hate you for that.  I don't understand.  If you are in the middle lane then what is so wrong with letting someone pass in front of you to make their way to the left lane?  Obviously no one works in downtown Knoxville anymore and they are all heading to West Knoxville.  Who knew?

I work from home so I am fortunate enough not to have to fight the rush hour traffic with everyone else every day.  If I did, then I would probably have really high blood pressure and would be close to stroke or heart attack even though I am a really healthy person.

Today is Sunday, after a fun afternoon at Mead's Quarry walking the choo choo tracks and throwing rocks into the water, we headed home to make dinner.  At 6 pm, we had a guy almost hit us from behind so that he could get in the left turn lane where the light was red and he wasn't going anywhere fast.  Then, there was a dude in such a hurry that he was weaving in and out of traffic on a four lane road and proceeded to cut off two cars only to find himself having to let a motorcyle in front of him when the lanes merged from four to two.  Then, he proceeds to tailgate the guy on the motorcyle.  So, I had to ask out loud, "where the heck is this guy going in such a hurry on a Sunday at 6 pm?"  Really?  Where was he going?

Why is everyone in such a hurry?  Can't you leave 10 minutes prior to whatever time you left?  Did I miss the part where every road in Knoxville is actually the Indy 500 track and we should all drive like a bunch of maniacs?

I certainly am not the best driver in the world but if I see you coming and you are weaving in and out of traffic then I am going to let you roll on because I am not that important and whoever I am meeting will understand if I am 5 minutes late.  I was taught that early is on time.  Simple.  I always leave early and 90+ percent of the time, I am going to be early or right on time to appointments, meetings, etc.  If I am late, it is because of something that I could not control but I don't stress and drive like a crazy person.  I apologize for being late and move right along with the task at hand. 

Maybe everyone could just take a deep breath and try to be gracious to one another on the roads.  It may not save the worlds problems but heck it may save some lives and definitely save some folks from blood pressure medicine/