Some Things Should Not Happen

I like to think I'm an OK driver.  I pay attention, follow the traffic laws, and most importantly, I'm a defensive driver.  This means I watch out for other people doing stupid things, even if I have the right of way.  Let's test some common sense.

OK, so this is a basic diagram of an intersection I drive through every day when I pick up my daughter after I leave work.  I'm usually caught by a red light in lane A.  So I wait my turn with my left turn signal on.  Assuming the red dots are red lights, and the green arrows are the green arrow lights for lanes A and B, it is correct for lanes A and B to accelerate and turn left and go about their business, right?

No.  It is not correct.  Before accelerating and turning left, you must check the other lanes for on coming traffic.  No matter how red their light is, you must still check.

It is necessary for you to check the other lanes, because lane C is frequented by unsafe drivers, also known as idiots.  Before I drove off from my position in lane A, I was cut off by a car turning left from lane C.  Not only was I cut off by some jerk running a red light in lane C, well...just look.

I was cut off by THREE FREAKIN' CARS!  All while my light was green...and theirs was red.  Red does still mean stop.  And while sitting there thinking of the injustice of the whole situation, I became more and more upset.  By the time Car 3 drove by my car, this is the view they had of me in my car:

Situations like this should not happen.  I never once set foot into a drivers' education class, but I have the common sense to stop on red and go (after checking my surroundings) when the light turns green.


Another situation that shouldn't happen is hitting a little closer to home.  Actually, this happened in my home just the other day.

This is my little girl's room.  Messy...always covered in books, blankies, anything that can be used in arts/crafts, toys, and anything she pulled out of her closet.  In a moment of incredible discipline, I decided to clean my house.  I cleaned her room and started catching up on laundry.  This is a big deal.  I really dislike laundry.  It was worth it.  I like for Silly Bug to have a clean room. 

Looks nice, doesn't it.  Silly Bug was excited about it because she was helping Mamma pick up the toys and other things she left in her bedroom floor.  She likes being helpful.


I finished cleaning Silly Bug's room and took her dirty clothes and blankies into the laundry room where I started folding the freshly dried load of laundry straight out of the dryer.  About that time I hear Silly Bug yelling to me.

I don't mind letting her have snacks.  I even have a whole section in the door of the refrigerator full of things she's allowed to have for snacks right where she can see them.

When I heard her open the refrigerator door, I didn't mind.  Not only does she like to be helpful, she also likes to feel independent.  So I finished folding the last few items in the dryer (because if I didn't do it then, I wouldn't do it EVER) before I went to see if Silly Bug got her cheese snack.

Here's the part that shouldn't happen.  I find Silly Bug in her newly cleaned room.  She didn't have cheese.  She didn't have any of her designated snacks...

...and she had made a very big mess.

My motivation did not endure.  I cleaned up the eggs...but the rest of the laundry and her egg covered jammies got as much attention as the red light in lane C.