I will control my anger... if you can control your car...

yes... 
I have a chip on my shoulder
but...
your driving style is offensive to me


so... as inappropriate my RE-actions may be
my RE-actions would not be present
if it were not for the leading inappropriate action
YOUR DRIVING!



as mentioned previously...
I flip off a good number of drivers...
but... it is not without reason
and... it the said car drivers... the recipients of "the bird" want to hear my perspective
they may... no... I do not want to fight them
but I do want to know WHY?


WHY ARE YOU DRIVING LIKE SUCH AN ASSHOLE?


so...
this morning... a morning like so many mornings
a little stressed... did not sleep too well
got up crazy early... barked at the boys to go back to bed because they got up crazy early
got up and picked up poop from a dog who should already be house trained, but is not
then with coffee and the dog on the leash I left out so Didg can handle his business


I do not step blindly into the road... I wait... I wait for it to be moderately clear
I watch up the hill... when the visible light is Red Circle and Red Arrow I know that there is not going to be traffic turning right down the hill... this is a good time to cross
I often wait for the right turning traffic to get the red before I cross
then I wait for the two or three cars that did not make the green to run the red... they do not irk me as much as the two or three cars that follow them
they did not almost make the light
they are not bending the law
they are breaking the law


We really should have a red light camera at that intersection
good revenue generating opportunity


well...
so... a morning like so many
lunches made... boys dressed... backpacks packed
hope there is nothing special on this day
because we are not bringing anything special


we leave out the house and our neighbor is loading up her two kids before us
I know we are late if we are leaving out before them
car loaded up and seatbelts on I make a U-Turn to get in the long line of cars waiting for the light to turn green
we are about six cars behind our neighbor's car
they turn right and we stay straight to cut through the National Zoo
this is a great opportunity to make a comparison between the two routes


we make the drive with no great issue
conversations vary
the usual stuff


in our usual fashion we park a few blocks away
Grant joyfully walks the dog
I walk with my boys towards the corner
as we approach the corner I watch the cars as they hit the intersection


car one rolls past the stop line and proceeds forward with a little less than a toe touch to the brake
they move fast and fluid forward
we are a few steps from the corner... it is not yet our turn
but we go unseen
never are we factored into the equation


car two... runs a similar routine
when car three gets to the intersection we are standing at the corner
not being an assertive asshole I wait for them to go so it will then clearly be our turn
they roll through stopping for traffic then rolling forward when it is clear
again... never taking notice of the 6'4" man in the bright red sweatshirt accompanied by two young boys and a dog


the next car makes its stop at the stop line... it is our turn to go
we arrived at the corner before they arrived at the stop line
I look at the driver... she is heavily focused on the passing traffic
she looks left but does not look right
we start across the street


still looking left... I am almost past the driver's side corner of the hood
my boys are in front of the grill with the dog
driver still focused looking left
never looking right... never noticing the family in the crosswalk in front of her


then it happens...
she accelerates forward
NEVER LOOKING LEFT?
ACTUALLY NEVER LOOKING FORWARD!


this is not an everyday occurrence... but it has happened before
only once... that was about 6 years ago
but today it happened again
impulse reaction I hurl my coffee on her windshield


she stops...
her windshield wipers must be moisture sensitive because they are cleaning the coffee off the windshield as soon as it slaps on the surface
my heart rate is skyrocketing


I do not cuss... I do not scream... I do not talk to her
she gives a wave as if to apologize
she does not seem angry... or at least I do not notice
all I really cared about was her stopping her car


all I really cared about was her not running me and my family down


it was wrong... I was wrong... I should not have done that
that was beyond wrong
that was beyond inappropriate
on top of that... I wanted that coffee


that intersection is problematic every day
well... I guess most intersections are problematic every day


action and over reaction.
not sure if I would recognize this driver again... as I did not really have that much time to concern myself with anything more than not being hit


I appreciated that she was not irate about my actions
I also appreciated that it appeared that she realized that she was in the wrong with her never looking right or even forward