Road Rage

A little blue car pulled up, driving beside me just before I reached the stoplight for my turn off. I looked out my side window and this old santa looking man with white hair and beard was obviously yelling obscenities while looking in my direction as he drove beside me. I had no idea what his problem was and looked away toward the road I was driving down. I noticed at the stop light he was no longer beside me but behind me he didn’t have his lights on. I didn’t give it much thought.

I turned and drove thru the little town and down the road over the bridge. As I came to a stoplight I glanced in my rear view mirror and the angry man was getting out of his car, on a busy road, and coming over to my car. I immediately locked the door and I could see he was again yelling obscenities at me. This time it was obviously at me.

It was probably a foolish thing to do but I rolled down my window just a bit. “What IS your problem” I asked him.

“You almost ran me over and ran me off the road back there, that’s what the problem is. What the hell is wrong with you?” he shouted back at me quite angrily.

Being that it was nearly dark I looked back and his car was there behind mine door wide open and still had no lights on. Thinking to myself someone is really gonna hit you with your stupid self standing in the middle of the busy road.

But instead. While closing the window simply and matter of factly said.. “Maybe you should turn your lights on..” He started going back to his car still shouting at me and flipped me off.. I saluted him back.

I hadn’t even seen him till he pulled up beside me. Only place it could have happened would have been in the passing lane of a 4 lane highway as I was merging to make my turn and he may have been partially behind me in my blind spot. There was no traffic on that road so running him off the road would have been hard to do being 4 lanes. I will admit it is possible it had happened.

He didn’t have any lights on which being past dusk all the other cars on the road did. If he had been in my mirrors blind spot at the time it was most definitely possible it had happened as he had said. I didn’t see him. If he had his lights on I would have. But he didn’t so it was part due to his neglect too. It was unfortunate but what was done was done.

Perhaps it would have been better for me simply to say, I was sorry and I would be more careful.. But his over reaction and his obvious stupidity, of not having his lights on in the dark.. (45, minutes past dusk), and now standing in the middle of a road with traffic going by shouting at me about almost running him over, only led me to react the way I did.

I really was not upset or intimidated by his actions as he probably wanted me to be. I was completely cool, calm and collected. The light turned before he could even get back in his car and I continued to travel on up the road. I noticed he was still behind me. I was keeping my eye on this rather strange enraged person. I turned from a turning lane on the highway onto a side street.. Again he followed me. He finally turned his lights on.

I wasn’t about to let him follow me home so decided to turn and make sure he was following me by going right back the direction I came; down a side road that paralleled the highway I was just on. Sure enough, I was right. He was following me.

I decided to do the old trick I learned when I was a kid. If someone is following you drive to the police station. I was still strangely calm with no real fear, after all I was in my territory. I had drove almost a full circle to start right back in the direction I had just come from and sure enough he was still right behind me.

I arrived at the stoplight that was the turn to the police station. I guess perhaps he figured out what I was going to do and decided to give up or was getting tired of wasting his fuel following me in circles and was going to just go back to going about his business.

From the passing lane, while I waited for the light to make my turn, he was still glaring at me and cussing me. I didn’t look his direction only out of the corner of my eye as he was trying to make that intimidating eye contact with me that was not working.

I still drove to the police department and waited at the stop sign in front of the station for a minute waiting to see if he would back track around again. He didn’t

I watched my rear view mirror all the way home.. I was going thru a busy part of town so anywhere I would have pulled in there would have been help had I needed it. Not to mention I had my cell phone if needed to call for help.

I have to wonder about a person that gets that mad. Perhaps it angered him more that he didn’t intimidate me when he got out and tried to get in my face… My lack of reaction to him. Or maybe I was just that last straw on an already bad day.

My lack of adrenalin reaction does bother me a bit though. My heart didn’t race. My blood pressure didn’t seem to raise. He could have gotten out with a gun and shot me.

Have I gotten so used to peoples raging at me on my job that someone angry has no effect anymore? Ah well.. just another adventure of life.

I hope he makes it home okay..

2 Comments

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  By Meridian, March 20, 2007 @ 12:27 am

  Hey Dreamer! I’m glad you’re alright, as well as the man. I had a similar incident. Sometime last year between March and May, I was a left turn lane behind a red jeep. The light turned green onto a two lane road, and I passed the person in that vehicle, just going about my business. As I drove further up pass Jack’s ( a nearby restaurant), a vehicle on my right comes flying past me on my right and eventually gets in front of me. So, he does a relatively decent speed at first, then deliberately drops down 15 miles below the speed limit given. So I get in the right lane to pass him and in doing so, he increases his speed as well. So I drop back down to let him go on but he drops back down to. Meanwhile, I’m thinking why is this person playing with me? I’m just trying to get home. So I looked over and saw two white males laughing. And of course, when I try to press the gas some more, the people in front of me are going slow. However, every car in front of them gets out of the way all quick. I was mad then. I had to get back into the left lane where they were at, but he kept riding beside me and keeping up with my speed. So as we neared my turn, I slowed down to a complete stop right in the middle of the road like the man you encountered. I didn’t care. I know I wasn’t being logical or rational, because I didn’t know if these guys were packing anything or not. It was a dumb decision on my part. As the story goes on, he stops directly behind me and cuts his brights on and hops out of his car. But before he comes up, I start to drive off. So he gets back in and follows me. However, I wanted to give him a taste of his own medicine and I deliberately drove as slow as 5 miles an hour as we approached a yellow light. We both made it through eventually, and he stopped following me. He flicked me off as he drove on. But I’m not gonna lie, what I did felt good even though it was the STUPIDEST, MOST IDIOTIC THING I’VE EVER DONE IN MY LIFE AND NEVER WILL DO AGAIN! Folks are crazy. I could’ve died that night. But I was mad.

  I’m driving trying to get home and these guys just wanted to intimidate someone for no reason. I didn’t do anything to them.
  So, after that night, I don’t go down the same road to go home….
  But you know what, I found out most guys driving in vehicles will pick on WOMEN for some reason. I find that interesting. Women are of the weaker sex, why don’t they tick someone off who’s the same GENDER as them?!

  Have you ever noticed that?
  After that night, I try not to have road rage as long as I live….In some cases it’s hard, especially when you’re in a hurry…but you don’t want to ride someone’s tail or get even or nothing…and that’s helped out a lot.

  I enjoyed your blog entry once again Dreamer! Keep them coming!

• 

  By Meridian, March 20, 2007 @ 4:06 pm

  I know stupidest isn’t a word…lol
  But I know you know what I mean…:)

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