Alright: I've had it with other drivers. ENOUGH.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Driving is my favorite thing in the world. Yes, I enjoy it more than that. And that.
When I'm having a stressful day, my therapy is driving. Not hoonage, just driving. Get behind the wheel and let the drive take over. Enjoy the scenery.
When I'm not having a stressful day, I still enjoy driving. Sometimes hoonage, maybe. But mostly driving. Turn on some blues rock and connect with the car. Or maybe I'll turn the radio off and crack the sunroof and drive around in just the right gear to get an earful of V8 snarl.

But I'm having a hard time enjoying driving lately. Because of other drivers. More accurately: because of other people. The problem is that most people seem to be completely, utterly, and 100% unaware that there is anyone else in the world but them. They will look you straight in the eye without the slightest acknowledgement that you exist. When you combine this with driving, it's not just inconvenient. It's unsafe and potentially expensive. I'm sick of having to drive for me AND all the other people around me. I'm sick of having to anticipate their oblivious stupidity and drive accordingly. I'm sick of having to stop and wait for them to figure out what they're doing (nevermind indicate it to anyone else around). I'm sick of having to dodge them because they can't figure out what lane lines mean. I'm sick of waiting patiently for them in the parking lot because they can't leave enough room for two cars to pass each other. I'm sick of driving around at 10 to 15 miles below the speed limit in town because they've got a phone stuck to their face or they can't read addresses without stopping in the middle of the road.

I really can't stand it. It's intolerable. There's not even the most miniscule semblance of awareness.

Median turn lanes? For saps. Just stop in the travel lane. Don't signal. There's no one else to hold up.
Certainly don't go the speed limit. There's no one else with anywhere to be. And even if there was, how dare they be in a hurry to go anywhere? What inconsiderate behavior! Having things to do and places to be, while perfectly normal people are out there trying to drive slowly somewhere.

Parking spaces aren't even vagues suggestions. Just put your car somewhere. Face it kinda the right way. No one else needs a spot. And sure the Echo only cost $17 dollars new (adjusted for inflation) and it has indestructible unpainted rubber fenders. But demand that end spot! Don't leave it for people who care about their cars. And the fact that the Echo isn't even half as wide as the parking spot? What parking spot? THIS IS SPARTA DAMMIT.

EVERY SINGLE DAY I deal with each and every one of these things multiple times. I am sick of it. Once in a while, this stuff is tolerable. But everyone else on the road is this way. EVERYONE. There are NO GOOD DRIVERS IN THIS TOWN. The posted speed limits are mind-bogglingly slow (I HATE federal meddling, but I really wish there was a national law prohibiting sub-35mph speed limits on 4-lane roads) but people STILL can't be arsed to reach them. The shoulders and medians are wide but people turn from SMACK DAB in the center of the main lane of travel, but only after reducing speed to a near-stop and then failing to use a turn signal to indicate what the Sam Hell is going on.

It's not even the ineptitude that I find intolerable. Stopping three times before crossing through a roundabout? I can deal with that.

I have lost all tolerance for inconsiderate behavior.

Yesterday I sat at a red light trying to turn right behind a car also turning right. There were no other cars in sight in any direction. We waited for the whole light to finish. The driver was not distracted. He was not on the phone. He was not talking or looking at a map or lost. He was staring mindlessly straight forward out the left side of his windshield in complete unawareness that anything at all might be happening anywhere.

Last night, we got about 4 inches of snow. This morning the roads were solid ice with snow on top. I, and a handful of other cars, were stuck behind some girl in a little hatchback as she drove along at well below the speed limit because she was afraid of the snow and ice. Nevermind the fact that it was a 2 mile stretch of straight road with no intersections. SNOW! TERRIFYING! Which is fine: if you're that terrified, don't out-drive your severely limited capabilities. But did she pull off to the side at the sight of a line of cars behind her in order to let them quickly pass? Nope. She just held up the world. Not that she could have SEEN the cars behind her: she hadn't bothered to clear the snow off the backlight.

Two days in a row, at the same convenience store, I have pulled into the lot and aimed at the empty end parking spot.
And two days in a row, a grey-haired geezer in a truck has pulled in front of me (I stopped, you see, because I KNEW he wouldn't, and because I'm keenly aware of a fact others seem ignorant of: two physical steel-and-aluminum objects cannot simultaneously occupy the same space without resulting in expensive disaster) and taken up not only the spot I was clearly aiming for, but also HALF OF THE SPOT NEXT TO IT. Just take 'em both! And they BOTH LOOKED ME IN THE EYE AS THEY GOT OUT OF THEIR TRUCK, as though nothing in the world could be more normal. There's no shame or embarrassment, not even defiance. Because there's no REALIZATION THAT ANYTHING IS WRONG. Absolute ignorance.

I can't take it. I'm sick of it. The thing that fries my brain the most is the knowledge that none of this is ever going to change, and there's nothing I can do about it.

[mmkeller]

I could not have said it better. A drive in the country has become a nightmare. Someone pulls out in front of me and no one behind me! really? then they drive 20 mph slower than posted speed limit! You can't fix stupid.

[Loki]

MoD, the problem is that you are not making other drivers aware of your presence. I say you should install an air horn in the Lincoln to wake people up. Or pick up a cheap Police Interceptor Crown Vic and people will make sure to stay away from you (hopefully).

[krash]

Buy a retired undercover crown Vic, insert ls1, live every day with a smile on.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Driving a Crown Vic would only make things worse. Haven't you seen the way people drive around cops? Drop to ten under the speed limit and stay there until they're out of sight!

MoD, the problem is that you are not making other drivers aware of your presence. I say you should install an air horn in the Lincoln to wake people up.

I shouldn't have to make them aware. They should BE aware.

Although this does raise another frustrating point:
Things that used to serve as polite reminders (flashing your brights, a tap on the horn) are now almost universally interpreted as hostile attacks. Flash your brights at someone and you get a middle finger if you're lucky, and a brake check if you're not. Honk your horn at someone and you get yet more middle finger. I don't want a confrontation. That's exactly what I'm trying to AVOID. It's disappointing to me that there's no COURTEOUS means of communication between drivers.

[Bubba1]

Buy a retired undercover crown Vic, insert ls1, live every day with a smile on.

Since you're getting yourself all worked up because you encounter bad drivers where ever you drive, I'd strongly advise against driving in NJ/NY or Boston, you'd have a stroke within 5 minutes.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Since you're getting yourself all worked up because you encounter bad drivers where ever you drive, I'd strongly advise against driving in NJ/NY or Boston, you'd have a stroke within 5 minutes.

You couldn't pay me enough to ever go to New York. In a car or out of one. Not joking. A billion dollars? Sorry, keep it. Not worth it.

[Bubba1]

Since you're getting yourself all worked up because you encounter bad drivers where ever you drive, I'd strongly advise against driving in NJ/NY or Boston, you'd have a stroke within 5 minutes.

You couldn't pay me enough to ever go to New York. In a car or out of one. Not joking. A billion dollars? Sorry, keep it. Not worth it.

Why not?

[Repo Man]

I almost plowed a Camry yesterday when we both went through the roundabout, him in the right lane and me in the left. he decided that he was going to go all the way around and pulled right in front of me. I have NO idea how I didn't hit him, but getting broadsided by an Avalanche wouldn't make for a good day. I was homicidally pissed, but there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it.

[Bubba1]

I almost plowed a Camry yesterday when we both went through the roundabout, him in the right lane and me in the left. he decided that he was going to go all the way around and pulled right in front of me. I have NO idea how I didn't hit him, but getting broadsided by an Avalanche wouldn't make for a good day. I was homicidally pissed, but there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it.

I had an amusing experience with an pi$$ed off driver yesterday. I was enroute home in my son's little bone stock Corolla putt-putting along quietly in the right lane @ 40mph in a 40mph zone, 4 lane road, many traffic lights. This angy guy in a modded new Beetle, dual fart cans, silly cosmetic wings and stickers flies by me at about 70mph in the left lane when he had to jam his brakes to stop for a red light. the light turned green as I approached, so I stayed at 40mph and buzzed right by him standing still. Fuming, he mashes the throttle chirping the tires in every gear to proudly pass me again.....only to jam his brakes again when the approaching light turned red, even locked up his tires. Same thing happens, light turns green as I approach, old fart me buzzes by him at 40. He gets even angrier and does the exact same thing with the same result. Clearly thinking with the wrong head, the dope did it a total of 4 times at consecutive lights. I finally waved to him with a big smile on the 4th light as I buzzed by him yet again. He gave chase yet again and started flashing his lights at me and flipped me the NJ international symbol of friendliness as he accelerated by me. Gotta wonder about some drivers.

[MinisterofDOOM]

You couldn't pay me enough to ever go to New York. In a car or out of one. Not joking. A billion dollars? Sorry, keep it. Not worth it.

Why not?

For starters, I am NOT a City person.
But in the case of these particular cities: My experience with New York and Jersey is that they're places where impatience, inefficiency, rudeness, and population density collide in a very, very special way. Just unpleasant. I'm happier avoiding them when possible.

FWIW, my complaints in this thread are about rural driving. I can deal with city driving, generally. It's a result of traffic density. I'm used to impatient and aggressively rude drivers...Utah's full of them. But out here in BFE Idaho, it's not overt disrespect that's the problem. It's lack of awareness. I find the latter far more frustrating, for some reason.

And just to clarify:
This isn't a road rage rant. I realized long ago that reacting angrily to these kinds of things does no good at all. But that's part of what's so frustrating: I sit back and take it, because I'm not willing to be an ***hole. And all the while the problem continues.

[BusyBadger]

Since most of my driving is interstate and mountainous I doing have the opportunity to pull of the stoplight chicanery they Bubba can.

I just egg the other driver on and let them speed by when we close in on one of the many trooper hangouts. It's like watching an antelope run into a pride of hungry lions.

I got spoiled by living in Germany right out of high school. I miss the autobahn...and the drivers that use it.

[nissangirl74]

Instead of moving to Idaho, you should have moved South to AZ. That scenario you described doesn't even exist in our retirement communities. I love most of our roads. There are a few that need repair (115* plays hell on asphalt) but none of them are dangerous and most of them are beautiful; even the rural roads. Your car would love them.

[AZhitman]

Driving a Crown Vic would only make things worse. Haven't you seen the way people drive around cops?

I can vouch for this (I've had 4 police package Vics), it's miserable.

[AZhitman]

Chris, I drive a POS on my daily commute for THIS very reason. I'm just WAITING for some a$$ with their face buried in their text messages to get sketchy and clip my daily. I'll make SURE they're cited for distracted driving (AZ prohibits texting), and I'll subpoena their cell records if necessary.

Their insurance company can cut me a check (which I'll promptly send to my mortgage company as principal payment) and I'll patch up the ol' beater for the next round.

Who wants some?