Learn to drive, Jackass!

Thanks to FedEx, I've just experienced a wonderful road rage incident perfect for posting here. After preparing my monthly expense report, I walked it up to my post office to put in in the FedEx drop box there. As I didn't have any envelopes, I planned to use the envelopes that are in the top of the drop box. After walking up there, the drop box was out of suppies. They had address forms, but no packaging. Poop.

I walked back home and got into my 900 and drove over to the FedEx/Kinko's in the strip mall near Costco. I hate driving there because it is located next to a very busy intersection for coming in/out of the strip mall, and it is difficult to back out of the parking spot and get out of the lot.

After sending my reports, I backed the car out of the spot and waited to turn left to the main driveway of the strip mall. Traffic in/out of the strip mall doesn't stop, but entering from either side (as I was) the traffic has stop signs. I waited for over two minutes for an opening, and the car across the driveway from me had taken their turn. The next opening was my turn go, and turn left onto the driveway. Instead, the ten-year-old Chrysler minivan across decided to drive straigh across. I jammed on my brakes to not hit him, and was stopped in the driveway. As I honked my horn, the male driving the Chrysler jammed his brakes on, so I couldn't move forward. He just sat there glaring at me.

While we were sitting there, blocking traffic, I put down my window to yell obscenities at him, to tell him it was my turn and to "Learn To Drive!" and The Jackass opened his door. He looked back to his bumper, I think he though I had hit his dirty van. When he saw I hadn't hit him he closed his door and peeled out taking off, without saying a word. By this time, other cars on all four sides were honking at us. What a fooking tool. My blood was boiling.

Learner's Permit Plus Toyota Camry Equals...

When somebody is learning a new skill, he should be trained on how to use all of the tools required to to perform that skill with the utmost precision. Unfortunately, my next-door neighbor's 16 year-old daugher is not being given that opportunity.

The eager young woman is being taught to drive in her father's dented tan Camry. Driving a car such as this, she'll never have the opportunity to learn about vehicle control, steering feedback, or any of those other aspects of driving that are "sensed" rather than learned from a book. I fully expect to see more dents in their Camry, and I'd wager that she'll back at least one tire into the "ditch" across the road from their driveway when she learns to reverse out of the driveway.

My one hope is that she can read the Camry's alarm fob instructions, and teach her father how to not set off the alarm with the PANIC button. I'm totally over the sound of his false car alarm.