Common sense...Can it be taught?

 Driving circles...literally!...


I'm going to tell you now the answer is NO!!! I almost was in two accidents with in minutes of one another, both times while in a circle (you crazy New Englanders call them roundabouts...I'm sure others do to, but I'm from New Jersey...its a circle. haha). The signs clearly show you how to navigate a circle and in which lane one needs to be to exit the circle. Does this mean that people follow the signs or show courteous behavior while on the road? Nope, unfortunately. The sign states that the right lane should either exit right or go straight, while the left lane goes straight or continues around the circle. While in such circle I was in the left lane entering, my intention was to go straight. I figured the guy next to me would be doing the same as he did not go right out of the circle. Wrong, he decided to keep going around in the OUTSIDE LANE! So I had to hit my brakes abruptly to avoid that person and even though my horn was blazing the person just continued like nothing was wrong. This is NOT the circle that I drove through but it does have the same traffic pattern to it.

When I had arrived at my destination some two minutes down the road I realized that I forgot to stop by the bank. Fantastic, around the circle again because the bank was on the other side. Grab my money from the ATM and back on the road, this time while in the RIGHT lane to avoid any difficulties. A tractor trailer entered into the circle with me in the middle of it. He stops, I stop and then he looks at me, like I'm in the wrong. What is wrong with people? Is it that hard to drive around a circle? I guess that is why my home state of New Jersey is slowly getting rid of the circles. Its a shame, they are easy and convenient. One does not have to stop at a light and can continue on unimpeded.


Left lane IS a killer...

So most of us drive on road with more then one lane right? Well for most of us it is a lane for passing and traveling at a faster pace then the traffic on the right. Or at least this is how it is supposed to happen. The good state of Florida JUST made it a law to move to the right when not passing. I thought this was common sense/courtesy. Apparently not because on my daily travels I have to constantly go around these people. I even had a person argue with me that if they are doing the speed limit they do not have to move over. WHAT?! You are impeding traffic by, first going the speed limit, second by doing it in the left lane. Lets face it, for must highways the speed limit is a suggestion and most of us go over it on a daily basis. What this means is that the left lane hangerouters sit there (some even say "they can go around me") breaking the law and making everybody behind them very angry.

This is when accidents happen. People are going to speed, please do not be the police and try to stop them. If you do not like it move over and let them go by. Its not hard. Otherwise these angered people go around into the right lane and pass. They do it wether it is clear or not! They will squeeze past you at just about any cost. Now it might not be so bad if there is one person behind you, but what about two, three, or even four people pulling out into the right lane and gunning the throttle. Multiple people now are trying to squeeze past you. Its not a good scenario and can be avoided. I also know that people will tailgate and honk. This is not proper either and should be avoided. If your coming up to somebody who is moving slower then you give them a quick autobahn flash twice. Do not be an ass and hold your highbeams for an extended period of time. What your doing is starting a power struggle with the car in front of you. Nobody wins. So I will end by saying , please do us all a favor and move over.



Some more things that can kill...

We all also know that we should drive while distracted or angry. They both increase the likelihood of an accident. Some of those things more than others. Distracted driving, according to National Highway And Traffic Association, 16% of all fatalities on the highway were caused by distractions. Some distractions are very preventable. Wake up ten minutes earlier to shave, put on lipstick, or eat your bowl of cereal. I have driven close to 750,000 miles I have some stories about what people do on the road, but I'll save that for another time. Driving while intoxicated (on any drug) is one of those things that you would think would be common sense. Driving is a privilege not a right and if you are caught DUI it should be taken away permanently! 

My personal pet peeve are people on phones. Texting, talking, surfing the net or whatever else you can possibly do with your phone nowadays. I have seen the after math of what these types of distractions can cause. Pics are of my mom's Elantra. She was struck while going through an intersection. Presumably by text'er that blew the red light. She was able to walk away with minor injuries (she did throw a clot in her leg and she is still dealing with some aftermath stuff). Thank you Hyundai for building such a solid car! All airbags deployed as they should have and I'm convinced that it was infact the car that saved her. I just saw a woman in her Toyota 4-runner run over a curb, then slow down, then ran over the curb again. Why? well as I pulled up next to her she was texting away on her phone. I guess she does not get it. Some people have to have something bad happen to them before they get it. I just hope that myself or anybody else I car about is NOT there when it happens.

some vids just because...

So with that being said...

Hyundai has bluetooth standard in ALL vehicles and the new Veloster has a "talk to text" application. This enables the driver to speak and the system will convert your voice into a text message and send it through your phone. It uses Hyundai's new Bluelink system. This subscription only package as a multitude of features. Including stolen vehicle recovery gps, emergency alert, speed limiter, and geo fence are just a couple of the options available with the Bluelink system. What Hyundai has done is made it safer to use your phone (if you really need to). Hyundai also knows that things happen and my mom is case in point. So all of their vehicles now come with atleast 6 airbags, Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Eletronic Brake Distribution (EBD), Traction Control System (TCS), Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), seatbelt pretensioners, and active headrests. Almost all of Hyundai's line up are 5 star safety rated as well. The Accent having 4 stars. So you know if your buying a Hyundai, your in good hands...big fluffy ones.

So please be safe and happy motoring! End rant/