I have yet to understand why people in LA don't ride their bikes more often (or why there aren't bike lanes?) People ride their bikes daily in Eugene, where it is 50 degrees and rainy half the year (and no storm watch!). Yet in LA people drive in the beautiful sunshine, wait behind green lights, and pollute that air! Strange, strange.

I love those kitty pics. Damn, Soba has attitude. Does she ever allow Roy to be on top?

Tina. Come to LA! Bring your bike! And then you will understand why people fear. I'm not kidding.

if you would bike how long would it take to go to work and back.

There is a guy who rides his bike from his house to the Park 'n ride, but he only lives about six blocks away. I thought about buying a bike for the commute to the bus stop (it's 3.5 miles and takes me 20 minutes each morning to get through traffic to the bus stop) but the ride home would be in the dark, and it's not safe to be a nice blonde lady on a bike in the dark in that part of town.

I'm a honker too, at least I was until the horn in my van broke. I still hit my steering wheel when someone pisses me off, It's just not as satisfying when it makes no noise...LOL

If I biked to work? ARE YOU KIDDING? There is no way to get from Encino to downtown in anything resembling a bike lane. I'd be riding through hollywood, echo park and downtown. HHAHAHAHAHA.

Please send some local peeps here to get my back on this one. please?

I was a honker too.. til I got this "soccer mom van" and it has aobut the lamest horn I've ever heard.....

i live like fifteen minutes drive from my work in LA and if i tried to bike i would surely die.

biking is not to be done in LA proper unless you wish to be catapulted into the sky.

I've got your back on that one, CAP. I grew up in LA and can attest that LA is definitely not a bike-friendly city. Shit, I used to almost die just trying to ride to the local mall as a kid. But to downtown?? ... uh yeah ... NO.

Dear Kendra and Kat,
Thank you.
xo,
not-so-crazy lady

hmm... my boyfriend has issues with the finger and driving. or at least he doesn't think they're issues, but I do. his pavlovian response to being cut off so you can drive 20 in front of him, driving 40 in the fast lane on the freeway, and likely honking is to give the finger. He also says it's not road rage, but i do get scared for my life hoping that it's not open season for guns on the freeway. The fingerage lasts for a solid minute or two just in case the other driver didn't catch it at first glimpse.

I'm of the opinion that to minimize the traffic in LA, we should limit the number of cars to one per person and only if they have ample parking at their residence to accomidate all cars in their possession. For that's my theory on why traffic is so bad in LA: people don't have enough parking for the 6 cars they are collecting, so they're forced to rotate driving them around just to have a place to put them.

Well, now I don't feel so bad - I, too, have a Pavlovian response to being a honkee.

Sadly, I had some explaining to do when I was walking my dog and my mother-in-law passed by and honked to wave at me... Sorry, Mom, thought you were a pervert/asshat/jerkoff!

Maybe you ought to move to Philly, I bet they have nice bike trails there. And then, you could check out that nice man, Steve D. He's totally crushing on you!

I find it to be a line-of-sight issue; driving a big truck, the little folks behind me don't realize there's a pedestrian in the crosswalk or (gawd forbid!) traffic on Pico. I don't like to honk, but I will. Oh yes. I certainly will.

I especially like to honk when some dumbarse has parked and is getting the crap together and decides that its okay to leave their door wide open, even tho the streets are too narrow for traffic to pass safely. I honk right when my engine is about level with their fat head. :)

Just curious - you SnB'ing tonite?

I'm too scared of road ragers in this town to give the finger. I once turned right on a red (perfectly acceptable here) and as I started to drive straight, a white van from out of nowhere zoomed up on my right (as I was in the left hand lane), cut in front of me and stopped. In the middle of the street! The driver hopped out and started coming toward me! I was having none of that and whipped right around him before he could get to my door. Scary!

But I have on occasion honked. Loudly and for a long period of time while making colorful language that only I could hear. And I have a habit of making jazz hands at people to indicate their stupidity while driving.

But no finger. I'm always afraid it will be someone I know.

I thought people in cars AIMED for people on bikes in LA. I've never lived in LA, but I can guara-ma-effin-tee you that I wouldn't bike to work if I lived there.

Well I wouldn't bike 19 miles either, that's for sure! But I could see a few miles on the side streets to the park n ride... That sucks about it being dark (although bike lights help). In Oregon we don't make enough money to warrant overtime or late hours, lol, so my butt is always home before it's super dark. Our crime in Eugene is usually theft. Of bikes, actually.

It's just a shame that the infrastructure doesn't support it. It'd be lovely to ride a bike in 70 degrees rather than this pissy rain! Bah! Sorry, didn't mean to put you on the defensive. I was meaning more in the global sense, rather than CAP must ride her bike this instant.

My husband is a regular flipper-off-er. However, since we were nearly killed by some maniac who evidently didn't appreciate being flipped off, we now do the under the dashboard flip off. Not quite as satisfying, but safer.

I only honk if the person appears to be off on another planet. I'm usually one to spout off profanities in the privacy of my own vehicle for various sins and stupidity. I also don't give the finger per se, but when I have a guy flip me off, I reciprocate by showing them my pinky finger. I know I shouldn't but hey...Most of the time, they drive off quickly. I just hope that someday I don't encounter one with a gun cuz I have a mouth on me too. I do have a special gesture for cell phone users who find their conversation more important than driving: right middle finger slapping palm of right hand = hang up the f-ing phone.

I love using my car horn! But not always with rage. There's the very short tap that produces a "peep" for the pedestrian who's stopped in front of my car to retrieve something from her handbag. Hello, I'm here, it says.

Then a double "peep" and a hand wave to tell another driver, go ahead, please turn in front of me.

A medium burst of noise tells another car, wake up! You almost hit me when you swerved out of your lane.

Then of course there are the lean-ins and rapid shot-fire horns - um, yes, those might communicate some rage.

But it's true - I get the finger no matter what horn noise I make. Come on people, I just like "talking" with my horn :)

I too grew up in LA and must say that you have to have cajones of titanium to do much bicycle commuting.

As I learned how to ride my bike in LA, however, I tend to ride my bike rather fearlessly in other places, like Santa Cruz, CA or Hilo, HI. Unfortunately I too have the "finger" response to honking...while on said bicycle. Nothing like flipping off the parents of your students in Hilo. But they don't realize this until Parent-teacher conferences when they recognize your helmet (the one with all the pretty stickers on it) or your bike (with the Harry potter sticker), yeah bay-bee, now about your kid....

I see people on bikes on Venice Blvd occasionally and I fear for their lives. Hell, I fear for my life and I’m in a full size sedan! It’s sad, but unless you’re on Venice Boardwalk or Santa Monica (which to be fair is not even LA really) it’s not such a good idea to bike in most of LA. It does seem a waste of the nice weather.

In my experience LA drivers only honk when they’re being an ass and don’t honk when it would actually be appropriate, like to warn another car of their impending collision.

My response is to "smile". Nothing ticks off a honker more than a bright sunshiny smile! And, you will look much prettier smiling, than giving the finger should a traffic camera happens to get a shot of you :)

Hi Monkey!I will not be at s-n-b tonight, I'm working late because I have to prepare documentation of blah blah blah. Booorink!

To Kim -- OH I LOVE THE JAZZ HANDS!! I may in fact start doing jazz hands and try to retrain myself. Luckily when I do my flippage offage, I do it at not-exactly-eye-level, so unless you're also in a Jeep or other tall car, you don't see it. That much I have learned :)

I agree 100% about the honking/finger response. Happened to me yesterday BUT I resisted all temptation to point my middle finger in the direction of the honker. Instead I chose to ignore the idiot who had absolutely no justification to honk at me. Since when can I not make a left turn at a light in to the left lane and another car make a right turn on to the same street in to their lane?? She was not going straight; she was making a turn as well. She had no "right of way" in this instance. And then when I moved over to the right lane (she was now behing me) she honked at me again!!

I have two honks: one says "Excuse me, I have been caught napping myself, so please don't take this the wrong way, but did you happen to notice that the light is green?" while the other says "What WERE you thinking?"

I try to make the first one quiet and subdued, not always easy given that vehicles have only one honk setting. I try to reserve the second one for truly egregious drivers.

I have had a theory that the standard male response to honking is "you got a problem?" and the standard female one is "sorry, what'd I do?". I am rethinking this now, while giving profound thanks that I don't live in the Valley.

Honking and giving the finger. I knew you were that special kind of person. I flipped off a truck that cut in front of me the other day, only to have it be one of my coworkers. Oops! Your number one! That's what I meant. Not!

Sign me up for the Jazz Hands party. I know Pittsburgh traffic is NOTHIN' like LA traffic, but it has moments requiring LOTS of jazz hands...like when the guy pulls out in front of you, you narrowly miss clipping him, and he then puts on his brakes for no apparent reason. Insanity!

PS - Did you get that Eiffel Tower stitch email?

I always flip people off under the dash of my car, not-exactly-at-eye-level. There have been a few road rage incidents here in NorCal and I'm secretly terrified that some gangbanger will see me flip him off and SHOOT ME.

Once, while driving here in Boston, where people are clearly not allowed to drive unless they are hopped up on 'roids, I once slowed down (admittedly, a bit suddenly) in a left lane to make a left turn. I had to stop because traffic was coming in the other direction, and as I waited patiently to turn, the (not so) nice old lady in the SUV behind me swerved out into the right lane, pulled up next to me, unrolled her window, and shouted at me (while shaking her fist menacingly), "THAT'S WHY PEOPLE GET SHOT!"

I did not flip her off. She.....frightened me.

Okay, time for a guy comment on flipping off. I actually think it's really funny when a girl gives me the bird. (Of course, I'm a courteous driver, so that doesn't happen often...yeah right). Although I think my smiling pisses off a woman even more. Laurie, you could flip me the bird anytime. I'll always have a smile for you. If a guy gives me the finger, then I'm pissed.

But what really pisses me off is when you let someone in front of you and they don't give you the "thank you" wave. C'mon people! Let's get civilized.

I've driven in a lot of cities, and I've gotta say, NY is the worst. Can I get an amen on that? You just drive where you need to go and don't look at anyone else. Just go, no matter what's around you.

So, Laurie, why not come to Philly and see how us East Coasters drive?

Wink, wink! Thanks for more laughs as usual.

If you hate being a honkee, wouldn't you want to be better than the honkers, and not be one yourself? Give folks benefit of the doubt when it takes them a second to get going? Maybe they can't see on-coming traffic when you want them to make a right on red. Maybe their baby is screaming. They are most probably not asleep.
Watch out when you flip people off - the last time I did that, it resulted in much back & forth of flipping the fingers, a gestured invitation for me to pull over so we could "work it out" and being cut off by the same person, almost resulting in me hitting their rear end, which would have been my fault, of course. All because I waited for a guy with a stroller to get all the way across the street, and because it took me a split second to shift into first. Now that was road rage. Now I don't flip off anyone anymore. I just yaaawwwn when they pass me.
Peace out, people.

I am SO a honker too!! And I have the same irritation when I get honked at because maybe I am obeying the laws...like pulling over for an ambulance.

The other day I was at a green light waiting for the idiot in front of me to finish DOING HIS HAIR before driving. And the 10 cars in front of him had already gone. I had to honk twice. And he still waited until he was satisfied with his hair before moving on.

You are definitely a southern californian now!! Giving the bird!!! LOL! Is there a "bird" smilie???? :P

Ahh, thank goodness I live in CT where it is illegal to be on your cell phone and drive at the same time. If only this did anything to cut down on stupid drivers. I only honk if whatever the person is about to do might potentially kill me or others, but I do yell a lot. I think I'm learning this from my husband, who yells at people who brake for no reason and people who turn too slowly.
And road rage has a whole new meaning when you're in the car with my Dad, who not only yells REALLY loud, but used to race stock cars. Whoo!

first time comment, funny that it is about honking and not drinking or knitting or cats (the things we have in common). ANYWAY, honking in Philadelphia is normal. People honk so much that it has lost all meaning. It's like "I'm running a caution light, look out", or "hey can I maybe get around", or "don't try to get over, I'm here". No one takes it personally except outsiders, which means the city is always honking and no one can even hear your honk, much less take it seriously.

Hey, Kim, that was publisher's clearing house in that white van trying to give you your $10million, silly! Seriously though, that happened to my ex-father-in-law one time & the guy beat the crap out of him. Not funny (even though he was a prick). Purl, are you totally blushing over Steve D or what?

If I'm stuck behind someone when the light turns green and they don't go, I think "Jeeze... why aren't they going... come on... I'm going to place my hand over my steering wheel... I'm going to honk... I'm gonna do it... Now the light turned yellow... There they go. And now I'm stuck at the red light. We they WAITING for it to turn yellow before the drove off? Fuck them. Fuck. I should have honked."

On the biking thingy, if I remember correctly...CAP would have major hills to deal with too. I mean MAJOR, like Hollywood Hills. Google them....YIKES!! I think it would take her way more than 2.5 hours to ride her bike home from work. The way there, probably not so bad, if she could avoid being hit!! I keep thinking of where Universal Studios & Hollywood Bowl area. No way, No How!!!!

You do know that Pavlov did his experiment with a dog, right? Just kidding.

okay...no one else has addressed this issue...so I must...the words "vertically challenged" and flames somehow do not belong together, am I right??? who comes up with these things?

heheheh... I knew ya'll were as obsessed with driving idiosyncrasies as I am!!

I'm a mellow driver most of the time, surprisingly. I do a lot of "talking" to drivers in my car. As in: "Hello! Hi! You! Yes, you. Care to merge? Hello! No? You're not going to take this opportunity to merge? Then I'm going to move! I *will* keep driving, ok fine. That's it. YOU HAVE LOST THE RIGHT TO MERGE."

etc.

heh heh

I think someone ought to bike in rush hour from ... say the Tampa/Ventura Blvd. intersection in the valley all the way to the downtown library. We could call it the "Tour DePotholes." I would read about it!!

And Stephanie ... thank you for commenting on the pic, which I thought was HEE-LARIOUS!!

Apparently, I am spamming my own website now. whoops.

Roy and Soba need to star in the feline version of The Odd Couple.

Years ago I remember seeing Richard Harris on Johnny Carson. He told a story about driving down a country road in Ireland and this older woman was just sitting in her car at one of the only stoplights in town. The woman sat there through a couple of green lights. He honked and honked and then and he finally got out of his car tapped on her window and asked. "Madam, are you waiting for any particular shade of green."

Steve D. is blog-flirting, for real! Too cute!

I am a self professed honker as well (some how that does not sound right)
Anyways I moved to Sunny California from Snowy Ottawa Ontario Canada, and the first time I honked with my husband in the car I was scolded and explained "People get shot for honking at other people in the states"
Lol
I still honk cause I am crazy that way

I honk, especially over by Ventura and Sepulveda. Too many knuckleheads.

Dude, I hate being honked at, too. Unless it's something I know I did wrong. Then I flash the peace sign (no really, the one with two fingers) and correct myself.

I'll honk lightly if someone's fallen asleep at green or something, a "yo, wake up already!", but that's only after the far less annoying and more subtle creeping up to their bumper. That freaks people a little, I think.

I have a honker...

HONK if you love Laurie!

HONK HONK!

Laurie are you sure we weren't separated at birth?

I'm the same way...ah, nothing like hypocrisy. :-D

HONK! Really, it's more like beep, beep on my car!

I have a 11 minute bike ride to work. People who drive like morons have seen my finger. I always think relax you`ll get there before me.

I have a 11 minute bike ride to work. People who drive like morons have seen my finger. I always think relax you`ll get there before me.

you know, I knew there must be a reason why people drive those awful lowriding full sized trucks. I thought it might be because they had bad knees, but I suppose being short would be a good reason too. that was nice of that guy to put it in writing.

There's a bike route along the Orange Line through the Valley, to Burbank, then cruise through city streets to the bike path along the 5, to Silver Lake (Fletcher Drive)...then it's through Elysian Park into downtown....

Easy peasy.... (tee hee)

Um, steve d. sounds creepy IMHO. Aren't you the same one in another post who was "separated"?

Martin Seligman experimented with doggy-wogs. But I guess that doesn't roll off the tongue like "Pavlov" does.

I'm vertically challenged too.
HONK HONK Aaaooooogaaa!
We all need personalize honkers, just like ring tones. My invention, don't steal it.

I try my best not to honk unless I sense immediate danger. I get very angry when I am honked at, but several months ago I flipped a guy off after he honked because I refused to turn left into oncoming traffic, and he subsequently chased me down, dented my car and assaulted me, so now I try not to react too overtly. I really don't want another encounter like that.

I honk at my house.

Literally.

My house is not a bad driver. Usually, I am sitting in my car, waiting for a kid to come out and get a ride somewhere.

And waiting...(while watching the clock and realizing that I am going to be SOOOOOO late to whatever it is that I am going to...)

And waiting...

And waiting...

My neighbors freaking hate me! But I do very little honking IN traffic. Lots of swearing, though! HA!

Hey! I absolutely swear that I've seen the fabric from the chair that the cats are on. And I've kind of been looking for that chair ever since. Would you mind telling me where it's from?

Thanks so much!!!

I'm not a honker. I'm an angry pedestrian most of the time.

Speaking of the wee beasties, how's Bob doing?

paloma - i think you were the one who said something about smiling at those who honk at you? cause i do that whenever i know that i didn't do something stupid (which maybe i am wrong and DID do something stupid?) it's lots of fun to wave and smile.

as for driving and being honked at, if you don't use your turn signal, i will probably honk at you. i swear that a majority of those who live here in the nashville area find the turn signal to be optional as well as a horrible pain and burden to use, requiring rocket science to make it work. or maybe they think that they save on gas consumption if they don't use it? or maybe they don't know which way to flip it to signal which direction they want to go, and rather than look stupid and signal incorrectly, they choose to not signal at all. it completely baffles me. and requires me to use my horn :)

What I want to know is...a. do Soba and Roy go horizontal at the same time, b. does Soba go first and then Roy says, "hmmm...nice hot Soba...oh babee," or c. does Roy enjoy some 40 winks and then Soba says, "shove over big boy, make room for Mama!"

I don't honk as much as I used to, but then again, I used to honk A LOT... I would even lean on my horn through an intersection if my turn at the stop sign had been ignored. And I too, as a gut reaction, will flip off anyone who honks at me. Hell, I flip stupid drivers off even when I'm not driving... my husband thinks I have some deap-seated anger issues, lol

The finger response to a honk is definitely a southern thing. I am conditioned to it fully, though I am afraid in the Dallas area it's gonna get me killed some day. Hey, Laurie, check out my driving "Only in Texas" pics. I think you could really appreciate them. ;0)

Laurie, you are a caution. I don't think I could survive living in an actual city. I grew up in Victoria where people (with their self -effacing English habits) drove around like they were constantly apologizing to others for the inconvenience of having to share the road with them.

"No, I insist, you go on ahead. I would much prefer a tragic early death than to be thought of as discourteous in my driving habits."

If someone saw you coming from miles away you both knew they would stop until you were well off into the distance.

My husband is from Boston where driving is grouped in somewhere with skydiving and being fired from cannons. When he feels someone has transgressed, he repeatedly blinks his high beams at them. Doesn't that just make you want to hug him?

Give them the finger, pwah. Honkage AND blinkage should result in a stiff prison sentence at the very least. What works for me, say if the children are in the car or if I am feeling particularly bloody minded and don't wish to seem churlish, is to stop the car, get out and ask the person responsible if I can help them. That is a high that can last for days.

Creepy? I'm actually a nice guy. By the way, what does IMHO mean?

When people honk at me, I smile BIG and wave really wildly.

Ah, the Pavlovian finger... I don't have that, but I do have the Pavlovian verbal response to someone honking at me. It goes something like this, "F*&^ you, you stupid Bas#$%#." I can't help it.

IMHO = in my (humble or honest) opinion.

hahahaha I have that same reaction! :)

ro -- the chair is from Ikea. Of course! heh heh

Re: the Roy And Soba situation. My understanding is that Sobakowa owns the house. She will walk around her kingdom, and see something that looks comfortable to lie upon. Usually, that thing is Roy. Soba gets cold easily, so I guess Roy is her heating pad? She always knows when he's feeling paltry, too, and she keeps him company.

While we are on the subject of proper conduct while driving, can any of you Americans out there confirm or deny for me that pedestrians in your cities do not have the right-of-way over cars? My sister-in-law in Boston stands firmly behind her statement that this is the case in Boston, and got quite frosty when I expressed disbelief. I would like to hope that Boston-related driving practices are just an aberration, or else how would so many of you live to go on and rule the free world.

Oh, and just one last thought. A win/win situation might be to to give free reign those trigger happy fellas on your highways to shoot people who drive while talking on cell phones. No questions asked.

i think that at crosswalks that do not have any lights to signal proper walking times, as well as at crosswalks when the light says "walk" that the pedestrian most likely has the right of way. that's what i seem to remember being taught in drivers ed over 10 years ago :)

With an 80-minute commute from my house in the country, through downtown Tampa rush hour, to downtown St. Petersburg rush hour, I have done my share of honking ...

Here's the thing: Other people are idiots/jerks/etc ... they have a good honkin' coming. Changing lanes to squeeze into the six inches between me and the other car, turning without signals, NAR braking (No Apparent Reason) .. I start each day kinda cranky, and by the time I get to work I'm in a pissed off mood ... I chill during the day, but the trip home ensures I arrive back at the casa in another lousy move.

I need to move to the mountains.

For what it's worth, I ride my bike to work (about 27 miles) every time the weather allows it, i.e., it's not actively snowing, and the roads are fairly dry.
On the other hand, a motorcycle probably doesn't count, huh?

I am horribly stricken with road rage, too, and I give people a thumbs up instead of a finger because it's nerdier and maybe more condescending and then I can count it as a grave injustice if they, in return, finger me.

I don't tend to honk or flip the bird (grew up in Seattle, where we try to not do stuff like that), BUT since I've come to live in Philly, I've noticed that standing IN the street (to see if the bus is approaching), or just crossing the street at any time, anywhere you feel like it, is a very popular pedestrian sport. Don't bother looking for oncoming traffic, just dart right out there!

hi, i'm hubs
i came over from backgroundnoise (jaeme)
funny blog. i'm 34 and look 28 too. it's just alright.

i figured i'd introduce myself since i will be coming back. i don't like knitting and there is no way i'm gonna keep up with 100 comments per post but i'm still intrigued.

enjoy your day.

I feel I need to do my small part at keeping road rage under control. Life is too short to get angry any more than absolutely necessary. Okay, okay, I live in the middle of the country in a small city. I've actually gotten out of two speeding tickets by greeting the policeman with "I'm so sorry!" And I was sorry ... I was in the wrong. Maybe they sensed my sincerity.

I would personally like ship all the bikers from Atlanta to LA, then. I have a Honda CRV; people just point and laugh when I honk...er, beep.

I wag my pointer finger as if to say :uh uh uh!" My husband tells me someone is going to shoot me one day.

BTW, what are jazz hands?

Forget about the honking, the bumper sticker with flames, and even the cats....all I could see was the GREEN TREES in the first picture! Here in NW Ohio it's snowing and blowing and gray and COLD and the ground is BROWN (now with white flakes!) and the trees are BARE! And Monday is Spring which can't come soon enough! Yea for green trees!

I'm surprised no one mentioned this. Maybe it's because we're all ladies and too polite, but there's a sweat factor involved with biking to work. I live and work in the greater Hollywood area. Two men used to bike to work all the time, for a distance that would be less than the Encino-Downtown trek. Both of them would have to pack extra clothing and hygiene products because they would be dripping in sweat when they arrived. Now, Laurie, I know as a Southern Belle you don't sweat so much as "glow", but that right there is reason enough not to bike to work. And the taking your life in your hands part too.

Oh, Steve D., I'm from the East Coast, Pennsylvania no less. I wouldn't bragging. Other than our innate ability to drive in snow and sleet, East Coast drivers are no better.

and Ann? Bostoners are just cranky from having to navigate the 10 million one way streets in that city. Peds Xing should always have the right of way, regardless of whether or not it's a law. Anything else is just a bully tactic.

In Australia Pavlova is a meringue cake filled with cream and sometimes fruit. It was named after some ballerina Anna Pavlova, so for an aussie when you say "Pavlovian" we think of yummy meringue cake with cream and fruit in the middle.

Seriously, Pavlova is the best desert in the world. Get an Aussie to make you one.

Mia

As I have a terrible memory for faces, especially when out of context, I always assume that when someone honks at me they recognise me and so I treat them to a nice big smile. Often it must be because I'm wandering like a random idiot into the oncoming traffic. I also keep up a running commentary on drivers when I'm trying to cross the road such as "pedal a little faster lady, I'd like to cross while I'm still young *big smile*" or when they rush to run me down "you know you will have to wait at the lights, no really, you will, was it fun to make me jump back *big smile*" The big smile really confuses the heck out of drivers.

As for honking, my dad honks far to much; when driving he has the patience of a thirsty cat. I always worry that someone is going to run him off the road, he's an old guy now, he's not that intimidating. Time was he'd honk, the other driver would yield, not so now.

Driving home from Charlotte to Indy via interstate driving I was amazed at the amount of people that can manage to drive 80+ mph, talk on the phone, use a computer, smoke a cigarette and eat... and pass me like I am standing still. It's a scary place out there.

Ya'll need a horn that plays DIXIE when ya toot.
You can get it at Auto Zone.
I'll be over this weekend to install it.

i've been called honky before, but i think it's more about lack-of-pigment than driving etiquette...

you get used to it.

"Vertically Challenged"

The truck (lowriderish) or the person in it?

RE: driving in the Boston area: Boston drivers raise impatience to an art form. Oddly enough, while there are a lot of fender-benders there aren't too many fatal collisions. There's just too much traffic to get up much speed to make much of an impact.
1. Right-hand turns should be made from the left-hand lane.
2. Turn signals? What are they for???
3. When the light has just turned red, it really doesn't count (like the yellow lights in Italy, it's just a suggestion)
4. When the light turns green, floor it; it will get you to the next red light that much faster, then you can slam on the brakes.
5. Drive in snow or rain the exact same way you do when the weather is dry.

In all fairness, though, we pedestrians are just as crazed. So which came first? Are the pedestrians crazy b/c of the crazy drivers, or have the crazy drivers been driven insane by the pedestrians? The ridiculous one-way roads, constant Big Dig construction, and lack of street-name signage are also factors. I personally lean towards the view that whle pedestrians have the right of way, it's only courteous to a. use the crosswalks and b. wait for the walk signal. Silly, I know , but I'm originally from NYS and have been too terrified to drive around here until fairly recently, >20 yrs later.

And I'd rather be Pavlov's cat (or dog) than Schrodinger's.

even tho i fully continued reading your post, all i could think when i saw the first pic was "look how green it is. wow. how lucky"

-waiting for spring in Michigan ( it is currently 28F, below freezing on the 17th of fucking March! damnit when is it going to warm up...oops sorry)

Purl, I just love your sense of humor!

I was laughing so hard about you honking at people waiting for an invitation to turn right on red. I am one of those people (in NorCal, not LA). I've been hit twice by people who changed lanes in the intersection or were speeding insanely so I won't turn right on red unless I'm absolutely certain that I have a clear turn. This, of course, leads to people honking at me (and flipping me off). My solution is then to sit up and not try and determine if I have a clear turn and wait. and wait some more. and when the light turns green, I turn but SLOWLY. It sends people over the moon. I think someone is going to have a heart attack some day. They are flipping me off and screaming at me. But it's completely legal 'cause I don't HAVE to turn right on red. You would probably be out of your car beating the crap out of me!!!! I'm a stubborn southern girl, that's for sure.

Pedestrians & right of way: in Minnesota, it is the law that pedestrians ALWAYS have the right of way, even when they're completely, totally wrong and are doing stupid things like jaywalking or crossing against the light. If you hit one, you're at fault, always. Now in practice, cars don't yield and pedestrians get hit all the time, cuz for driving "Minnesota nice" means "passive aggressive to the Nth degree."

Oh, I also reflexively flip off honkers. But I carry pepper spray.

I thought your car got stolen?

It did. It came back to me. I wrote something about it once... uh hang on.

Oh here it is:
http://www.crazyauntpurl.com/archives/2005/10/welcome_to_carj.php

Re: Vertically Challenged...well, at least he admits he's compensating.

I think that many of the sports cars I see (and HEAR GETAMUFFLERFORGAWDSAKE) need to have stickers saying "Insecure About My Manhood."

Theresa - you are my kind of a gal. I always try to keep in mind that the cautious driver ahead of me could be my daughter. It really helps with the stress level. I have been known to to the same thing on occasion - like slowing down and putting my hazard lights on when the person behind me is tailgating. Here in Canada, turning right on a red is the done thing. Added to my problems trying to drive in hell, oh, I mean Boston.

honking is the best invention ever. i honk all the time. it is the sign of a confident and empowered driver.

I give rude drivers the finger too. But not that one. I hold up my pinky finger, an assault on the other driver that indicates "you have a tiny, tiny penis". Even the other women drivers.

And I'm betting they do, too.

Laurie, thought you might like to check out this site upon your return from Paris. http://www.freetostitchfreetobitch.org/