A Sobering Morning

It’s not what you think.  I wasn’t drinking or needing to sober up.

I took my “Operator Retraining” course this morning.  4 hours with a very knowledgeable woman who has her own business working somehow with the DMV.  We learned about safe driving and, surprisingly, how the police officers are incented to come up with new ways to collect revenues.

The reason you ask?  They are given grants for giving tickets.  If they don’t give enough people tickets, they will lose their grants.  The instructor, Heather, told us all sorts of ingenious ways that they are catching people.

They are hiding in trees,  dressing like  the homeless, watching where people go through stop signs.  They are doing whatever they can do.  So be careful.  You will get a ticket if you are holding your phone while the motor is running.  You don’t even have to be driving.

What was more frightening, Heather told us, is that there are people who make a lot of money “causing accidents.”  These people are crooks, but unless caught, they are watching our moves, plotting an accident, and guess who’s fault it is?  Ours.  If we are even going one mile over the speed limit we are the ones at fault.  And, they can sue us.  And, if you don’t have enough insurance, you can spend the rest of your life paying off the suit.  Very scary.

Besides all of that, another reason why I am sobered?  Because, if I have one more ticket in the next 36 months, I get my license suspended for 30 days.  If I get a second ticket, it’s 60 days, and if I get a third, it’s 90 days.  And that’s just for the tame stuff.

Did you know that you could get your car crushed in California for street racing?  Literally they will crush your car – Hondas to Maseratis.  Luckily we are not in California and not street racers.

So if I sound a little scared, I am.  I don’t think I have ever driven the speed limit.  I wouldn’t want to get the cars behind me mad.  According to Heather, who has always driven the speed limit, we can all do this.  We can learn to follow the laws and we should since we have taken her class and get no more second chances.

If a car honks at you or rides up your ass, you call 911.  He is endangering you.  He is a reckless driver.  You don’t have to go with the speed of the traffic.  They are all speeding.  And, if you stay in the right lane going the speed limit, you will get there just as fast.  While hard to believe, I am going to try it.

And, the funny thing was, that driving home, I didn’t even get my phone out of my bag even though I “needed” to make some calls.  I left it there.  And, I drove the speed limit.  And I stopped for yellow lights.  And, I was calm.  Relaxed.  Not anxious.

And, i was overcome with sadness.  I don’t know why.  I think because I realize how out of control I have been for a while.  I hate to admit it, but I’ve been driving recklessly.  Racing through yellow lights, going through some red ones, speeding down residential streets, always in a rush, always ansxious to get to the next place.  My car is a mess and I am always anxious.  And I can see I’ve been running on adrenaline.  So, today, driving home was a new experience.  Nothing to worry about.  I wasn’t afraid of getting caught.  I wasn’t hurrying.

And, Heather says it takes 30 days to change a habit.  So, for the next 30 days I will follow the speed limit.  Obey the law.  Leave enough time to get places.  Stay in the right lane.  It’s really strange to be doing this, but I really have no choice.  If I’m not doing anything wrong, they won’t pull be over.  So for the next 36 months, that’s what I will do.  And, hopefully, the roads will be safer and so will I.

I think before it was some kind of thrill.  Watch what a bad ass I am, I don’t follow the laws.  Well, that gig is up.  I don’t even know what that was about.

And, my son is about to bring over 60 of his closest friends to have lunch at my beach cottage so I really better get moving………..wish me luck keeping my calm!!!!!!!