I know everyone has somewhere they've got to be, but rules are rules and laws are laws, and I'd really like for everyone to get to their destination with minimal stress and well, erm alive.
I have cruise control on my car and whenever possible - especially on motorways - I set the cruise at the speed limit for that road and as respectfully as I can, make my way from A to B.
I'm not a lane hog, but equally - unlike some vehicles I've seen - I won't weave back and forth from the slow to middle to fast lane repeatedly catching up on lorry after lorry and potentially getting stuck before accelerating like the clappers to pull out again. I like the idea of not increasing the chance of an incident, but more importantly not having to break and reset my cruise... :/
However, should I require use of the fast lane on a three lane motorway, where last I checked the speed limit is indeed still 70 mph, I will not break the speed limit or accelerate past the setting on my car's cruise control in order to overtake. Therefore, any amount headlight flashing, tailgating, gesturing and so on of any vehicle in my rear view mirror that doesn't have flashing blue lights on its roof will not make me get out of the way any sooner than I deem safe, or quite frankly until I am ready.
Some of the 'smart' motorways now have illuminated signs that state 'Be a respectful driver', 'Keep a safe distance', 'Drive to the road conditions'. So those people that ignore the advice either cannot read or maybe they believe they are above the law (we call them VIPs, changing the letters as we see fit for the occasion) or that they're just so good at driving that the rules don't apply to them.
When I first started driving (over ten years ago), I found the manner in which some drivers act on the roads incredibly intimidating and felt I must get out of their way as quickly as possible...
Nowadays, while I am much more capable of ignoring being dazzled, on good days I admit to infrequent (*snort*) cases where my patience is tested and I've been known to gesture back, but I still have journeys where I am tired or indeed not feeling at my mental best and therefore aggressive behaviour from my fellow road users does not a good day make.
A while back some douchebag was sitting right up my bum and there were too many lorries for me to safely pull in. When I thought it was safe I signalled and started to pull left but then had to pull right at warp speed because said moron undertook me while gesturing penis head at me and nearly took a chunk out of my bumper. What pleased me though was that they still got stuck in the exact same jam as me two miles down the road. Justice.
I do wonder if these people realise the stress they are imposing on others? Not everyone is a perfectly confident driver, and I wonder if the aggressor would actually be able to react quickly enough if there was an emergent situation?
I've been affected by this behaviour so often that I've tried to think of a way to devise a little messaging system for my back window that would try to communicate in the politest way possible, perhaps forming words out of multicoloured unicorn farts, on a speed/vs proximity basis, with sentences along the lines of 'Back off jack-ass', 'Seventy really is plenty' or 'I'm too tired for your sh1t today', but alas I'm not an engineer... and in any case, from what I've read, this is illegal, and I'm a good little law abiding citizen.
Positive news Just over ten weeks post-operation and I'm doing really well physically. Since late last week I've been driving again and I even walked the dogs (with mum's help - big up my mum for being my live-in nurse for nine weeks) over the weekend. I'm on a phased return to work as still can't sit in an office chair all day yet and work have been brilliant about it. I still get the occasional spasm in my knee cap and I'm utterly exhausted and aching at the end of each day, but I've ditched the Zimmer frame in favour of crutches that I only really need outside the house now. Stairs are still hard work but I don't have to ascend on my bum anymore so that's a plus! Literally the worst thing about the operation was the in-the-tummy anti-DVT injections, I was so pleased on week six when they were over, they hurt something rotten and I looked like a bruised pin cushion! I've really started to notice how much longer my right leg is now, ...
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