Some Non-trivial Things That Annoy Me.

[PetersCreek]

I've had two identical, really annoying driving instances lately when merging onto the Glenn Highway. I was high up the ramp, sighted the target car I intended to merge behind, and as I entered the merge lane, I adjusted my speed to fall in line. Just as Skippy...as good a name as any...was in my left rear quarter, (s)he decided to slow down, as if doing me the favor of letting me into traffic. If I could have sent an e-mail at that very moment:

Dear Skippy,

You are more predictable when you maintain a constant speed. I can adjust my speed to yours and safely merge either ahead of, or in this case, behind you. When you slowed down in a position where you were least visible to me, you became unpredictable. I couldn't confidently gauge your speed or intent because you were only a tiny, distorted image in my towing mirror. I couldn't really know if you were being courteous, inattentive, or a nervous ninny...until you slowed down even more, further stacking traffic behind you during rush hour. Oh well, at least I got to romp the twin turbos as I ran out of merge lane.

P.S. Your driving is like turtles mating: it's very slow, it's very awkward, and nobody wants it happening right in front of them.

[Jim]

Once, driving along a lonely, dark two-lane highway, I had a guy pull out, pass, squeeze back in front of me ... and then start flashing his brake lights at me. He must have thought that my headlights were too bright for his rear-view mirror. Poor fellow!

Or ... it could mean your tail lights were out/very dim.*

Yeah, more likely he was upset that you didn't either pull to the shoulder to let him by or didn't leave a lot of space for him in front of you or a combination, but sometimes you find a reasonable driver in t'other car.

* I encountered that this morning coming to work before sunup, a driver with his daytime running lights on, which meant he had some headlights but no tail lights.

[SeanF]

Since we're talking about merging, I'll tell this story:

This particular interchange has a fairly long ramp, so it's usually pretty easy to pick your spot to merge into. There was a semi-truck on the Interstate, and I needed to decide if I could get up to speed and safely merge in front of him, or if I needed to drop back a bit and merge behind him. I figured I had plenty of time and room to merge in front of him.

And I was right, except that what I couldn't see was the SUV that was at the same time passing that semi, the driver of which merged back over into the right lane at pretty much the same time and place I was coming in from the on-ramp.

Luckily, I was able to adjust and merge in between the SUV and the semi. My decision to merge in front of the semi in the first place was based on having plenty of room to spare, but I still ended up much closer to both the semi behind me and the SUV in front of me than I would otherwise have liked.

So, just as a suggestion - if you are passing someone right at an interchange, don't merge back over in to the right lane immediately upon getting in front of the vehicle you're passing, just in case there's somebody merging on from the other side as well.

[DonM435]

My mother learned to drive fairly late in life, and she could give some good advice on the subject. What I remember most is to (1) have eyes in the back of your head, if possible, and (2) assume that every other driver is stupid until proven otherwise, and act accordingly.

So, I always assume the worst and try to be prepared for it. Whoops, other lane just slowed by one per cent, better expect the jumpy guy to pull over here any sec- ... there he goes!

[Hornblower]

I have not yet driven in North America - Canada next year - but the "keep to the right" rule seems to work pretty well on most German Autobahns. It is combined with a no "undertaking" law i.e. unless there is a "Stau" (traffic jam) you may not pass anyone whilst in the right lane. Also most German drivers seem to handle merging pretty well (far better than Australian ones) and if possible move over at on-ramps to allow swift merging. However woe betide you if you sit in the left lane after overtaking.

Of course all these rules have no effect on severely congested Autobahns like that between Stuttgart & Frankfurt where one lane is solid trucks doing their maximum 100km and the other lane(s) are bumper to bumper cars.

Of course the law needs to be written and/or interpreted to give motorists and police common sense discretion under extenuating situations, and even the best system will break down if traffic is congested.

It would be unconscionable to expect someone in the right lane to slow down if some dummkopf ahead of him moves over and then slows down for no good reason. However if you are legally passing another car and someone faster comes up behind you and zigzags to pass you before you can get back to the right, he is definitely wrong and in violation. According to a friend of mine who recently drove on the Autobahn, he should just flash his lights and it is your duty to get out of his way immediately.

[ozduck]

According to a friend of mine who recently drove on the Autobahn, he should just flash his lights and it is your duty to get out of his way immediately.

Yes Hornblower that is about the way it seems to work. I once had overtaken someone, at about 120k/h, and was bit too slow moving back over. A car came up behind me very quickly and flashed his lights at me to get out of his way - which I obviously did. There was no fuss just his expectation that I would get out of the way.

[DonM435]

The trouble with depending upon "the law" is their hypocrisy. They post "Max 55, Min 40" yet tolerate alternative interpretations. Everyone will tell you that 55 is too slow, and if you can only manage 40, well, just stay off the road.

(When I took the road test for my license, decades ago, I took care to observe the speed limits, e.g., if it said 40, I didn't exceed 39, but tried to stay close. The state-approved tester had the nerve to tell me "Well, y'all passed -- on paper -- but if y' drive this way they'll eatcha alive!" When I asked for a translation, he told me that I was going too slow.) Ever since then, I've tried to keep it at +4, +9 or maybe +14, depending upon the surrounding traffic. Probably still too slow by popular definition. (At +15, the penalties get excessive, and I respect that, practically speaking.)

The only way they could improve the situation would be to boost the limits but with strict enforcement. I.e., speed limit is 80 mph, but if you're caught, every single bloomin' m-p-h over that is a thousand dollar fine and one night in jail, no appeal. After the first offense, or when word gets around, everybody would hold it at 75, consistently and legally.

But it won't happen.

[Hornblower]

When I am passing someone on an expressway, I usually wait until I can see the entire car through my back window in the main mirror before moving back to the right, to be sure I am not crowding it. The road on which I encountered that scary merge from the left widens to four lanes each way closer to Washington. It is not uncommon to see a hotdog driver zigzag through a tight gap and pass me on the right when he could just as easily have used a wide-open lane to my left. I have seen people do that even when nowhere near an off ramp which they may wish to use. Definitely a nontrivial and potentially dangerous annoyance.

[DonM435]

Really, if you're going to be driving many, many miles before exiting, shouldn't you keep to the left and leave the on-off traffic to sort itself off? But, no, the others figure you should move right regularly so that they can plow on through.

[Buttercup]

A friend finally managed to destroy her 15-year marriage. They were actually a couple for 20 years. I don't feel sorry for her at all; she squandered a lot of money and opportunities on "a habit"...might as well have flushed $X0,000 down the drain. Husband got tired of being the sole bread winner (they formerly worked very well together as a team in the business he started). Instead of going to counseling (his idea), cleaning up her act (he cleaned up his), she kept cussing and antagonizing him; this stupid defiance. Last week he told her to pack up and get out. Sure can't blame him.

Her chances of finding another good, stable, hard-working man are slim to none for reasons I won't go into. Oh well! as Phyllis would say.

[Jim]

I watched parts of several college football games this past week. There are a couple of broadcasters who really, really want their audience to "experience the excitement" so they play the crowd noise quite loud. So loud, in fact, that hearing the announcers becomes difficult. Granted, there are some announcers I may choose to mute (Brent Musberger) but it should be my choice.

[Buttercup]

...still bugged and bummed out by friend ruining her marriage. I knew them as a couple nearly 20 years. I'd hoped for continued barbecues and chats and exchanging holiday cards. They were so good together, as if they were truly meant for each other.

Husband is also depressed about their breakup; he's known the husband even longer.

[Trebuchet]

Today was my day for crossing to the east side of the water for pumpkin hurling purposes. Or, at the whim of the WSDOT, not. I headed out about 12:30 PM. Little did I know that the Hood Canal Bridge had been closed since about 11:30 AM. Because they were replacing anchor cables, hadn't hooked one back up, and when they opened it for marine traffic it drifted out of position and couldn't be closed. Oops.

It's non-trivial because:
A) They new the cable was disconnected, but opened it anyway, because...
B) The US Navy wanted to let a "boomer" through. I'd suspect that if the DOT had asked, the Navy might have been willing to wait a day or two...
C) Or at least until slack tide. Instead the opened it on a running tide so it drifted 15 feet out of position. Because, you know, it's a FLOATING bridge.
D) So then they put up a memo on the big sign approaching the bridge: "BRIDGE OPENING EXTENDED. EXPECT DELAYS." Ya think? Could they have made that any less informative?
E) And hundreds, if not thousands of people waited in a huge backup, unaware of what was happening. Much time and fuel wasted.

I've long considered WSDOT to be one of the less competent governmental agencies. Particularly because of the ferry system, but apparently the bridges aren't much better.

[Jim]

Since you mentioned it ...

I frequently go home using the Sam Houston Tollway Ship Channel Bridge. (Not for the faint of heart ... narrow, high ... I avoid using it in the dark.) On the approaches to the bridge are signs, black on yellow with a couple of lights on top:
TOLL BRIDGE CLOSED
WHEN LIGHTS FLASHING

I can imagine someone approaching that bridge for the first time, reading the first line, and looking for an alternate route.

Anyway, last weekend we had breakfast with family in Baytown and headed back on I10. I knew the toll bridge was closed for maintenance and I thought I'd finally get to see the lights flashing.

We came up to one of the signs, and the lights were out.

Seriously? You had one job, lights.

[Gillianren]

I know we're a bit out of your way, Treb, but if you swing by this way on your way back up to Port Townsend, we'd love to see you. And we're only, what, half an hour to forty minutes south of Tacoma?

[Trebuchet]

Had the bridge not finally reopened, I'd take you up on that. Or, if you meant when I come back to PT, I'll consider it on Monday!

[Gillianren]

Either way. If you have to go around the Sound, at least you have a place not too far away to stop!

[Trebuchet]

I crossed that bridge when I came to it late this morning. I'm now even annoyed with WSDOT than before, for a couple of reasons.
First, the problem was utterly predictable. If you've got a cable on one side disconnected, the thing is going to move. Even at slack tide, because the mass of the opposing connected cable is going to drag it over.
Second, and perhaps worse, because when I crossed this morning they had a very large tugboat pushing hard against the south side of the bridge just west of the drawspan to keep it in place. "Very hard" as in two or three hundred meters/yards of wake from a boat not going anywhere. Let me tell you, that inspired some confidence. Not.
This is what I pay my gas taxes for. At least I'm not in the eastern half of the state, who has to pay for these bridges and the equally incompetent ferry system and gets no benefit from them.

[Buttercup]

My sister's SERIOUS lack of critical thinking skills.

She's posting support for a woman who runs an animal shelter. Woman is keeping a puppy against its owners' wishes. Cops told woman to return puppy; woman refused, got jailed.

Sister "supports her decision." Without knowing this woman...despite admitting she doesn't have a lot of details... She posts (FB) a too-brief article which doesn't give much information.

Despite all that, this woman is a heroic figure to my sister, who should be supported.

So I wrote this on her FB page: "Unless you know this woman somewhat, you really shouldn't vouch for her. Maybe the puppy simply got away from its owner(s) and this woman decided finders-keepers? I don't know - but there isn't enough information here."

[The Backroad Astronomer]

This both makes me happy and annoys me and that is weight loss, well the reshaping of skin because of weight loss is annoying.

[Jim]

My sister's SERIOUS lack of critical thinking skills.

She's posting support for a woman who runs an animal shelter. Woman is keeping a puppy against its owners' wishes. Cops told woman to return puppy; woman refused, got jailed.

Sister "supports her decision." Without knowing this woman...despite admitting she doesn't have a lot of details... She posts (FB) a too-brief article which doesn't give much information.

Despite all that, this woman is a heroic figure to my sister, who should be supported.

So I wrote this on her FB page: "Unless you know this woman somewhat, you really shouldn't vouch for her. Maybe the puppy simply got away from its owner(s) and this woman decided finders-keepers? I don't know - but there isn't enough information here."

Is this it?
http://www.lifewithdogs.tv/2015/09/s...to-return-dog/

The woman says the dog was being abused and she did not want to return it to an abusive situation.

[Gillianren]

My best friend is on medication that makes her functional. She's about to lose access to one of the medications, because it will be going generic. This means that the insurance company is canceling the program through which she's been getting it for free, because she absolutely could not have paid $1000 a month for it. However, since the generic is $400 a month, she is now just not going to have that medication. Which also may well mean that she won't be able to come spend the winter holidays with us, since she won't be stable enough.

[Jim]

That doesn't sound too trivial to me, Gillian. I hope she finds a work-around. Does she know which companies will be making and selling the generic? Has she checked with the pharmacies? Maybe one or more of them will have a heart ... er, similar program.

[Gillianren]

To my understanding, once there's a generic, you're out of luck in finding a company with a program that'll pay for it. I don't know about pharmacies. Fortunately, it seems as though she'll have a few months to do research before she loses the medication, but that means that she'll be losing it in the month that is, for whatever reason, the worst for her mild Seasonal Affective Disorder. All of this is definitely non-trivial.

[Buttercup]

Doctors who apparently can't muster up the gumption to turn around and tell LOUD PEOPLE BEHIND THEM to shut up. Sounds like this lady doctor is dictating in a rowdy bar (other females).

[TJMac]

My best friend is on medication that makes her functional. She's about to lose access to one of the medications, because it will be going generic. This means that the insurance company is canceling the program through which she's been getting it for free, because she absolutely could not have paid $1000 a month for it. However, since the generic is $400 a month, she is now just not going to have that medication. Which also may well mean that she won't be able to come spend the winter holidays with us, since she won't be stable enough.

I have no solutions, but once again, I'm reminded how I do not have it so bad. Ive been grumpy the last few months because my anti-seizure med jumped from $30 to $75 a month. Not impossible, by any stretch, but annoying.

I hope your friend finds a way to work around it.

TJ

[Gillianren]

Apparently, there's a new medication that's come out that is similar to the one she's been taking. It's so new that her doctor's office is awash in samples, and she'll be able to take that for literally months without running out of sample packs. If she responds to it the way she's responded to the one she's been on, that's a solution for now and her visit is back on. We'll see, I guess.

[Buttercup]

My best friend is on medication that makes her functional. She's about to lose access to one of the medications, because it will be going generic. This means that the insurance company is canceling the program through which she's been getting it for free, because she absolutely could not have paid $1000 a month for it. However, since the generic is $400 a month, she is now just not going to have that medication. Which also may well mean that she won't be able to come spend the winter holidays with us, since she won't be stable enough.

I'm sorry to know this. I - all too often - come across comments by doctors that a patient can't afford a certain medication for that very reason; and other reasons too.

It's just ridiculous that *citizens* are too often forced to go without.

[Trebuchet]

Apparently, there's a new medication that's come out that is similar to the one she's been taking. It's so new that her doctor's office is awash in samples, and she'll be able to take that for literally months without running out of sample packs. If she responds to it the way she's responded to the one she's been on, that's a solution for now and her visit is back on. We'll see, I guess.

If it's a good enough replacement, it'll drive down the price on the original as well. Here's hoping.

[Gillianren]

The teacher of Simon's play group told the woman I'd arranged a carpool with that I didn't need a ride tomorrow. She'd called me last week, and we talked about transportation issues. I told her that Graham's schedule will be changing in a couple of weeks, and I won't need to carpool anymore. I told her that it was possible to take the bus, though taking the bus will mean being a little late. A few things like that. But I did not say I didn't need a ride for tomorrow. If the woman hadn't messaged me tonight, Simon and I just wouldn't have gotten there for tomorrow, and I'm not sure I would have known why. The more dealings I have with this teacher, the less I like her.