When planning a vacation, one of the decisions you will need to make is how you plan on arriving at your vacation destination. While it may be possible to travel by train or by bus, most people struggle between the options of flying or driving.

When deciding between flying to your vacation destination or driving, there are several factors you should take into consideration. One of these factors is the cost. If it is just you that is traveling on vacation, it may actually be cheaper for you to fly than it would be for you to drive. This is particularly true if you are traveling a very long distance that will require putting a great deal of gas into your tank. If there are two or more people in your traveling party, on the other hand, it will likely be less expensive to drive.

In order to determine which of these two methods is the least expensive, you will have to know the driving distance to your vacation destination. Then, determine how many miles you typically get from a gallon of gas and divide the number of miles you will need to drive by the number of miles your vehicle gets per tank of gas. This will tell you how many tanks of gas you will need to drive to your destination, which will help you determine how much you will have to pay in gas.

Of course, there are more expenses to flying than purchasing the ticket. For example, if you want to have the freedom to travel once you arrive in your destination, you will need to rent a vehicle. This can also be quite expensive.

Although flying will most likely cost you more than driving to your vacation destination, another factor you will need to consider is time. A vacation destination that takes 24 hours to drive to will probably only take three to four hours of time in the air. Of course, you will have to arrive at the airport a couple of hours early and obtaining your luggage after the flight can also be time consuming. Nonetheless, if your destination is far away, you will still save time when you fly. In addition, some destinations simply cannot be reached by road and will require a flight to get to them.

If you are traveling with children, driving will be a far less means of transportation but can be difficult for the family to endure. Therefore, if you decide that driving is the right choice for you, be sure you have plenty to do while on the road.

Guide to Traffic Signals When Driving through or by a College Campus

Graph by: Adfirmus via Graph Jam Builder

Japan has a lot of three-day weekends–nearly one every month, and they’re a great time to travel. Recently, we had our Labor Thanksgiving Weekend, and I really wanted to go on a trip. Unfortunately, where I live is sort of remote. We have some local airports that basically only get service to Tokyo and some super-express trains, but we lack an international airport or the 新幹線 shinkansen, so getting places quickly and cheaply can be difficult. Because of the night buses and the flights to Haneda Airport, Tokyo is probably the easiest place to get to. However, since I was JUST in Tokyo on business, I didn’t really feel like turning around and going right back. Luckily, some of my friends were also not interested in spending their vacation on 12-hour train rides or shelling out for plane tickets, so we decided to do something you can really only do if you live in the country:

Road trip!

We decided to drive to Fukui-ken to do some sight-seeing–some temples, some gardens, some nature, maybe some museums, and Obama-shi, which is famous for seafood–and for being called Obama.

Eiheiji 永平寺
〒910-1192 福井県吉田郡永平寺町松岡春日1-4

The courtyard of Eiheiji

Eiheiji was founded by Eihei Dougen in 1246 CE. Because the temple has was destroyed in fires several times, the current temple structure dates from 1749. The temple complex is gorgeous, settled into an area of great natural beauty. As an added bonus, Eiheiji is the main training center for Soto Zen priests, and you can see them performing rituals and listen to their sermons. Taking photos of the priests is forbidden, but I did notice they all seemed to be in their 30s and wore eye-glasses with their robes and shaved heads, which wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. Of course, I also wasn’t expecting the priests’ office (for recording the schedule, events, book-keeping, etc.) to look like my town’s immigration division, but there you go.

Paintings on the ceiling at Eiheiji

The self-guided tour of the inside of the main building is quite interesting–there’s a room with over a hundred paintings on the ceiling and some gorgeous altars. The courtyard garden with the 紅葉 (red autumn leaves) in full swing was gorgeous.

Murasaki Shikibu Gardens 紫式部公園
福井県越前市東千福町２１−１２

Murasaki Shikibu Kouen

Obama-shi and The Five Lakes 小浜市、見方湖

Obama-shi is famous for fresh seafood and being called Obama. Because the city supported President Obama–Obama for Obama– in the 2008 election, they got a lot of press (and tourism from local Obama-supporters). We stopped by to get some “Obamiyage,” as we called it (Obama omiyage). They retorted with an equally 寒い冗談 (cold joke = bad pun): Obaman, or Obama manju. 寒い！

On the way back to Fukui-shi, we drove around the Five Lakes. I think it’d make a great hike in the summer, but as it was rainy and cold and we were rushing to the garden, we didn’t get to spend a lot of time there.

Toujinbou 東尋坊

View of the cliffs from the trailhead.

I had been hoping to see these famous cliffs at some time, but my Japanese friends had no interest because of its reputation. Toujinbou is a place of rugged natural beauty, and, as such, a popular place for suicides. The cliffs aren’t extraordinarily high, but the sea is very rocky and shallow in many places, so the chances of survival from a fall are not good. The cliffs are also supposed to be haunted by a Buddhist monk who was thrown off the cliffs by either 1.) the townspeople, on charges of corruption, or 2.) his rival for a romantic interest. Despite its reputation, it’s still a popular spot to visit in good weather, and there were plenty of other tourists around that day.

We got lucky–we went here on the only sunny day of the weekend. We walked from Toujinbou to the island of Oshima (安島）–about a hour at a leisurely pace. The island is supposedly haunted, but it has a beautiful forest, a good view of the sea, –and, naturally, an extremely creepy abandoned shrine.

I have to say, living all the way out here has really increased my appreciation for and desire to see parts of “hidden Japan” that I would have never gotten to experience if I had been sent back to the city. Convincing the other foreigners in the cities to come enjoy the countryside tends to prove difficult, but for me, this kind of life is like an adventure everyday.

*They aren’t that expensive if you get a deal, but we planned this about 10 days before departure, so none of us was really going to fly anywhere cheaply.

The use of mobile phones/cells was banned for a reason, yet people are still testing the boundaries. The majority of the public want tougher action to target drivers who use their phones whilst driving.

The 2008 film by Will Smith ‘Seven Pounds’ in theory targets those people who drive using their mobile phone and addresses the consequences of his actions. He loses his wife in an accident because of his carelessness using his mobile whilst driving resulting in a head on collision with another car. Any distraction can seriously affect your judgement of the car, the road and your surroundings, and despite the new law that was put into place some people are still doing it.

Nearly 72% of 2000 motorists who took part in a survey for the Association of British Insures (ABI) think that drivers using mobile s are the ones most likely to cause an accident, followed by male drivers (45%) and uninsured drivers (34%)

72% of motorists would like insurers to be able to check driving licenses for relevant motoring convictions as honest motorists are getting fed up with drivers who lie and cheat to obtain cheaper insurance. It doesn’t matter what car is driven be it a used Lexus RX or a Jaguar X-Type but some motorists have the habit of lying about convictions to lower the cost of insurance, and it has been recorded to be mainly men as the cost of driving annoys 60% of motorists, followed by traffic congestion (44% and the condition of the roads (42%)

In a bid to combat this fear, insurers are currently discussing with the Government whether they would be able to check (licenses) for relevant motoring convictions.

I am asked very often how I manage the long 6 hour drive to see my KoD. It’s such a shlepp, how am I able to do it every other weekend without being exhausted. Good question.

My answer is always that no one is forcing me to do it, I drive the 333 miles because I want to spend time with my husband, and it isn’t often possible for him to drive up here because of work constraints. Knowing that he is there waiting at the other end with arms open wide, well, that gives me the impetus to get on the road. And, yes, once we get our visas this long distance shlepping will be a thing of the past.

Those 6 hours on the road there, and 6 back, give me time to think and to meditate. I shall be honest, the first hour from Montreal is always “let me get through the border with no hassles”. Once I am through it’s a straight road all the way through the Adirondacks, past Lake George and Albany, through the Catskills. When the roads are clear, it’s an awesome chance for me to just let my mind start putting in order all the little bits and pieces that have been bothering me, or just need to be filed in the right place in my mind.

For much of the way cell phone reception is very poor or spotty at best, so I know no one can reach me. It’s like being in my own private bubble. No one needs me, no one is calling my name, no one needs Ima to come help with anything… this is totally MY time. I often will put aside issues during the week, in order that I can totally think them thru on the drive – no interruptions, no distractions. I talk to God a lot during this time, too. I meditate. I come up with subjects for blog posts or books and articles. I have come up with many solutions to many issues on these long drives.

Initially the drive was torture. But I have been doing it for over a year and once the car hits the open road, you get into the zone. Long distance drivers know exactly what I am talking about. When I arrive at our home in NY – I am tired and my back hurts, but I am mentally refreshed too! It’s like I arrive with all my worries filed correctly under the right emotions, leaving me free to just be with the KoD without extra stuff crowding its way in. That last half hour knowing I am almost there – nothing in the world beats that excitement and anticipation at seeing my husband. My heartbeat speeds up as the car slows down. That reunion at the end of the 6 hours makes it all worthwhile.

KoD – only 77 hours….not that I am counting or anything!!!

Taken yesterday while driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway in rain and fog.

© 2009 D L Ennis, All rights reserved.

NOTE: Permission for the use of my images is granted for personal websites and blogs but is to include a link back to this site and proper credit given to me, D L Ennis. Link to be used…(Visual Thoughts http://dlennis.wordpress.com/)

NOTE: Commercial use, and the creation of prints, must be purchased! For more information you can contact me here.

We all knew these days would quickly come after a blissfully hot summer but it’s always a shock to the system when the real wet season hits. In some places the rain falls and creates mini Tsunami‘s, and you really know which places these are because habitants have large SUV’s and 4×4’s or in some places even car boats! Now i have yet to see someone replace their rubber dingy with a modified car boat but i think this could be the future people. I remembered seeing an Audi A5 in Portsmouth last year being geared up to take a river run challenge, never got to see how the event panned out but needless to say i was quite intrigued to see this car transformed into a speed boat.

I bought this warning sign from a cute little boutique in Sheffield upon my last visit and gave it to my friend for his birthday who drives this busted up yet vintage 1968 Ford Mustang (his dad’s heirloom). He’s a South African fella who thinks he is god’s gift to women – actually he acts like a dog on heat 24-7 its disgusting, but i knew this gift was perfect for him. He drove the Ford to Scotland a few weeks ago to see some lady friends and from what I’ve heard, he has actually got the warning sign to work in his favour! I was shocked – actually was i??

Image : http://www.flickr.com

Challenging Your Child to Success

Parents have the job of challenging their children. Unlike criticizing them when they make a mistake, challenging them will help motivate them to improve and will introduce them to the concept of “cause and effect.” When the bedroom is clean (cause), there’s time for an extra hour of TV (effect). When a child misbehaves, the effect should be a learned lesson, not a prolonged punishment.

When I started teaching, my standard procedure was to condemn children who did not satisfy my expectations or execute their moves perfectly. I thought that by pointing out their flaws, they would focus their efforts on fixing them. However, pointing out their flaws did not motivate anyone to fix anything, but created a negative focus on the situation. Instead of focusing on the errors, focus on what is right and use that as a launching pad to suggest potential improvements.

Everyone has heard of the saying ‘If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.’ Instead of just focusing on what your child has done wrong, choose a specific goal and challenge them to meet that goal. If your children have trouble with a homework assignment, patiently go over it with them. Before pointing out flaws, find something positive to say. In conclusion, one of the most effective ways to help your child is to challenge him or her to be their best.

What goes whirr, screech and expletive?

Me driving in Colombo. 

It’s hazardous I tell you. Great peril, At Your Own Risk, Warning, Watch Out. This is what driving in Colombo is like. It’s Grand Theft Auto live except you don’t need to shag some road-side bint for extra points (unless you’re keeping score). Pedestrians amble, dart, run, crawl over the busiest roads. Buses, giant ogres of the road, alternately lumber and sprint and then idly wander across lanes, brake suddenly and veer out onto the road with complete nonchalance. Tuk-tuks, bicycles and motor bikes, swarm like bees, filling any gap in traffic. The minutest gap between bumper and fender will be immediately blocked by some pillock on a buzzing contraption. Traffic lights may or may not work and if they do, they aren’t guaranteed to maintain a logical system. And sometimes, with luck, the white dotted line on the road is clear. But it doesn’t matter because everyone drives on the dotted line. Not to the left of it, not to the right. But in the middle. Our main ‘highway’ – Galle Road – has two major lanes. And in some stretches, it turns into a one-way ‘highway’. And so, in Colombo, to get from A to B, one must always go through C, D and Z. That is the way. 

And I must navigate these mean streets in my ridiculous little box-on-wheels without shedding a tear. This is hard.  Especially when you are chased by a massive bus with a braying honk and vomit encrusted sides. They do it on purpose, I know. Nonchalance, keep cool, do not be swayed. But it’s hard for me and my Nissan not to gibber by the (crumbling) sidewalk and allow all and sundry to metaphorically, and sometime literally, drive all over us. But wait – look – it seems clear. Right, indicator lights on, we’re pulling out and then a bus comes smashing through on the right and an old man appears to teleport on to the road on the left and we gibber. Fine, now we’re turning right onto a small lane going slightly downhill. No one coming straight ahead, rear-view mirror shows a jeep in the distance, indicator lights on, we’re making the turn, nearly there and… jeep has come whirling in on the inside of my turn. Gibber. Stuck in traffic, behind a looming bus and so we keep our distance. Now it’s time to inch forward, slowly, slowly and then a tuk-tuk and scooter come screeching into the gap, brake hard and grin. I can’t tell if I’m in the correct lane because there’s no signage and besides, my view is blocked by a large bus, a tuk-tuk, a scooter and now a van filled with babies is trying to make a U-turn into an (imaginary) gap between me and the bus. Behind me, a John Deere tractor piloted by an emaciated jester chewing paan is also attempting to fill the (imaginary) gap. I am blinded by the high beams of oncoming traffic and deafened by the cacophony of honking around me. It is very hard not to cry. 

It is, of course, my fault. I am not playing by the non-rules. I have made up fantasy rules in my head about keeping to lanes and braking at zebra crossings. Not so, oh ingénue, not so. To survive, one must be mean and harsh. And honk frequently. One must swerve and bob and weave and use the brake sparingly. Pedal to the metal, one hand on horn and don’t stop for pedestrians. Not quite for me. I drive at 30 to 40 kilometres per hour. And get excited and nervous when I hit 50 – it’s time to slow down. I love my brake, I love my hand brake and the accelerator and I could use more time together. I brake for children, old men, old women, school kids, dogs and roadkill. I use the horn sparingly and when I do, feel ashamed and rude. I am too gentle for the road. I know this, and worse – others can see it and prey on it. To succeed on these cruel roads, I know I must gird my loins, rev my engine and, with a squealing of tires, take off and not look back. I will manoeuvre the tightest gaps and my horn shall take on mocking overtones. My side mirrors will be mere accessories and my highbeams shall pierce the darkness. Jeeps and vans will quail before me, buses shall know my extreme nature. And that day shall come, and it shall be grand. But before then, let me just stop for this old ‘un dragging a sack of coconuts across the road…

Most North American cars have one set of bright lights on the back, of course those are the brake lights.  But some American cars and most European cars have other bright lights on the rear: rear fog lights.

If you’re not familiar with this concept, then you probably assumed their lights were malfunctioning or their break lights were “stuck.”

Rear fog lights make it much easier for the vehicle behind you to see your car when fog, rain or snow is heavy.

Some rear fog lights are a pair of lights mounted low on the rear bumper.  Other cars have a single light, mounted near the driver’s side rear turn signal.

There are debates about the validity of rear fog lights.  Some claim they can be confused with brake lights, others agree but believe that is still safer than not seeing the vehicle until it is too late.

In the photo of the instrument cluster, the icon on the left is the front fog light indicator and on the right is the rear fog light indicator.

Some cars have separate switches for front and rear fogs, other cars have one switch that activates both.

Studies have shown that in North America more people inappropriately use their fog lamps in dry weather than use them properly in poor weather

BrokenSecrets.com

Photo Credit: mroach (Creative Commons)

Sources: DriveAndStayAlive.com Wikipedia SAE

So it was down to our final day of shooting on Karolyn Szot’s Message Received.

7.30am call time. With just a small crew, we headed out to the front of Evanston Township High School to grab a wide establishing shot. As we unloaded our gear onto the sidewalk and started putting the crane together, a bus from the nearby Double Tree hotel pulled up right next to us. Next thing we know, out pours a group of young Asians who start taking pictures of the high school. It all seemed rather bizarre to us at first, since 1) it was really early on a Sunday morning and 2) our dear neighborhood Evanston Township High School isn’t usually a hot tourist attraction. I’m pretty sure they weren’t expecting to see a film crew on a random sidewalk either. So as much as both groups tried to carry on like nothing unusual was going on, we all couldn’t help but take repeated glances at each other, wondering what on Earth the other group was doing there.

I thought it’d be fun to see if I could determine where the group was from by identifying the language in which they were speaking. So as I worked with Benz to set up the camera, I put my eavesdropping skills to use.

Can’t quite hear them… oh wait, i think they’re speaking in English… hey, that accent sounds familiar…

“AH!” I exclaimed to Benz excitedly. “THEY’RE SINGAPOREANS!”

Our actor Johnny Langan talking to the students from Temasek Academy, Singapore

I haven’t been home in a year, so seeing them brought tremendous joy to my heart. Can you believe they were also from the school where my dad used to teach? Talk about coincidence! Oh boy, the odds of that happening must have been one in a million. Apparently, the students from Temasek Junior College’s Integrated Programme were there on a Science and Mathematics trip and had visited ETHS earlier.

Karolyn decided it’d be a great idea to ask them to be extras in the movie and after some persuasion, they kindly agreed. So now we’ve got a shot of our main character James walking to school with lotsa fellow schoolmates! Sweet.

The next shot took us around to a parking lot at the back of the school. What we didn’t realize was how popular a place to park it would be among the lacrosse moms going to support their kids at a game going on nearby. One of them even stopped to ask us for directions to the field house. Good thing our Gaffer Brandon knew exactly where the field house was. “It’s over there, where the sign says field house… (pause)… darn, that made me sound like a total douche.” Being on crew’s tremendous fun, especially when you witness something like what happened next. It basically involved our Sound Designer Marshall sprinting across the parking lot after our moving U-haul truck, yelling at the top of his lungs. It was epic. Good thing we had all those donuts right before.

DP Josh filming Johnny texting behind the wheel.

Then off to St. Paul’s Forest Preserve again it was to get shots of Johnny driving and getting into the big crash. We knew that it was going to be a challenge filming our two cars getting into a head-on collision without actually damaging the vehicles or hurting ourselves. It involved precise steering and the ability to apply the brakes on time so we’d stop right as we were about to collide, all while avoiding the regular traffic along that road. So it was lead actor Johnny, DP Josh and Director Karolyn in one car, and me in the other. (I certainly didn’t wake up that morning realizing I was gonna be a stunt driver!) After several attempts to make it look like the two cars actually collided, we decided that a different strategy was needed. We treasured life too much to get close enough for the shot. That was when the brilliant suggestion of starting the shot with the two front bumpers touching and having both drivers go in reverse was made. The rest of it will be done in post-production. Oh, the magic of moviemaking!

Director Karolyn and DP Josh taking a shot of Johnny from outside the car

After a delicious lunch at a Chinese Restaurant (the rendezvous we went through to get there is another story altogether), it was on to complete the final few shots of the movie. With both Karolyn and Josh both outside the car concentrating on the shot, I took it upon myself to direct traffic to go around us. That’s when a lovely old couple on a stroll stopped to talk to me.

“Are you the same group that had the wrecked cars here yesterday?” the lady asked.

“Yes, that’s us!”

“So what’s the movie about?”

“It’s about the dangers of texting while driving, ma’am.”

“Oh! A worthy cause! Good luck!” She said, nodding her head in approval, as they both waved goodbye and went on their way. Aww.

Josh leaning on the hood to get the shot as Karolyn gives Johnny directions.

Our crew went through great lengths to make the film pretty, even if it meant our DP Josh working those back muscles, leaning on top of the hood with his legs stretched out for balance to get the final shot.

And with that, we could finally clasp our hands together and yell out with joy those three magic words: It’s A Wrap!

After months of preparation, 4 days of shooting and hours of lost sleep, we’re finally ready to move into post-production. Our Editor Andrew and Sound Designer Marshall are gonna have a fabulous time.

While looking back on the fun times and crazy adventures we had on set will definitely put a smile on all our faces, what I’m most excited about is the impact the finished film will have. Yes, it’s going to look fantastic and sound amazing, but more importantly, it’s going to make our roads a safer place for all.

Thanks for following our journey so far. Look out for Message Received next year, coming to a screen near you. And finally, please remember, don’t text and drive.

I just got home from a weekend at Orycon, Portland’s Science Fiction convention. Since I didn’t really attend Vcon I can say that this is the first fan con I’ve been to probably since Worldcon in Toronto. Orycon is a midsized convention I think, neither as large or Dragon Con or Worldcon  but not as small as Vcon.

I can only speak to my experiences from being there as a pro, in writing and editing. My early experience was with the committee in charge of organizing the panels. First, they found me through this blog as my email had changed since the last time I was down (probably a dozen years ago), and sent me an invitation to attend. They then sent out a list of possible panels and asked which ones I might like to be on. This form allowed for submitting a bio and a bio picture at the same time.

A couple times I needed to contact the committee to clarify some things (such as was the reading at midnight Saturday meaning midnight Friday because that’s technically Saturday) and they got back to me promptly. Thanks to Kami Miller and Rick Lindsley for all their help and organizing the panels well.

I did notice on site that there were no bios at all except for the guest of honor so I’m wondering why we needed to submit it. A bit disappointing that but the panels were listed in the large program book and the little pocket booklet. It would have been better to put some bios in the program book and left the panels to the booklet but then they needed room for describing them. I had offered (beforehand) to fill in on a couple more panels if needed but I never heard back and I did notice several panels only had two people on them. However, there were panels offered on art, editing, writing, costuming and other fan-oriented activities so that there were about five panels or more on at all times.

The booklet listed panels by room or by time and basically you could cross reference any way you wished. The kept all the readings off of the main listing though and had them separate which means many people missed them because they weren’t listed in the regular schedules. And I guess they were several hundred programs short in the printing.

I went to the art show, which was so spread out in a very large room that it look kind of empty. It might have been better to put the art panels closer together. The show ranged from the professionals like Lubov (the artist GoH), Alan Clark and a few others to the amateurs. There were fewer pictures of characters from Star Trek and other shows but it almost seems as if the unspoken theme was that of dragons.

That theme of dragons carried over into the dealers room, which was quite large. From what I could see I’m predicting Steampunk is on a huge rise and it will be flowing into mainstream fashion soon. There were many steampunk items from hats and goggles to other mysterious items and corsetry. There were very few books at all in the dealers room and the only presses selling their publications were Apex Book Company, Bizarro Fiction from Eraserhead Press,  and Talebones/Fairwood Press. I meant to go back and by one of the Bizarro books but forgot (and Apex too).  Darn. But the dealer’s room had gadgets, toys, comics, books, clothes, jewellery and all the goodies that people love to buy.

I missed taking a gander at the dance or masquerade and though there were few room parties they were fun and casual. The Pirates of the Columbia hosted one and I think they just do it for fun, plus there was the Radcon party, the hospitality suite and IRoSF, which my brain is blanking on right now.The costumes I did see were quite fun, from women in baroque dresses (complete with ship on the hair) to steampunk farmers and the Joker.

The hotel itself seemed fairly nice, and new from the Jantzen Beach hotel of previous Orycons. It was an extremely cold hotel though and they could have done with turning up the temperature a couple of degrees. I didn’t eat much but the food seemed all right and the hotel very apologetic when they screwed up our reservation. The rooms were quite spacious and nice with small balconies.

I’m notorious for not getting to panels at cons. Because I arrived at 6 I don’t think I attended a panel Friday except to do a reading at midnight in conjunction with Darklady Reed, Kal Cobalt and Tami Lindsley (hopefully I have those names right). Saturday I moderated the “Drowning in Slush” panel and attended one on Steampunk and on neural interfaces.  That’s a better average than usual. The Steampunk panel was quite interesting and well balanced. The neural interface panel was in jeopardy of being dominated about people talking about their disabilities but was save by the other panelists extrapolating into what’s being done and where it might go. And I managed to chat with the physicist so that I can worked out the logistics of a virtual environment story I’m working on.

Overall, I enjoyed the con and would consider going again. I also lucked out on driving weather, which was perfect. With stopping to visit friends, it was a pleasant (if long) drive.

The Holiday season is upon us bringing with it love, happiness and warm fuzzy feelings. This is a great time of year and I enjoy sharing it with others doing holiday things. It also brings a little nagging tug in my stomach. My hands clench. I get a little jumpy.

Tis the season for crappy driving.

Where I live there is no dreaded snow or ice – nothing to make drivers slow or swerve. They just drive crappy this time of year. I understand that for some this is not a cherished time of year, that they are lonely or are separated from loved ones. I understand that some may not have the money they desire to purchase perfect gifts for others. I understand that some have bad days and don’t know how to deal with stress healthfully.

That doesn’t give them the right to run red lights, tailgate, change lanes without looking or signaling, drive over the speed limit or flip you the bird for following the rules of the road.

There is lots of extra stress and anxiety and activities and family functions this time of year. You will get there when you get there.  Showing off while driving isn’t going to make your loved ones love you more.

Just the other day a local family was coming home from a wonderful vacation. A mom, a dad, and two young children. They were driving on a road I had just driven the day before. They were following traffic rules and regulations. They were getting ready for the Holidays.

Someone sped through a changing light and hit them. They all died.

I am allowing extra time while driving the next couple weeks. I am singing happy songs, smiling lots, waving at those I don’t know and not worrying about getting anywhere fast. Just think – if you did the same, maybe everyone would be a little safer.

I have been driving around the Fort Myers area for the past few weeks with a burnt out right headlight. Yes I am aware that I could be issued ticket for this indiscretion, and I am going to take care of it, I promise.

I know I’ve said that to myself before, and I’ve found reason after reason in the past to delay this errand, but now I am out of excuses. As many of you know when you work long hours and weekends it becomes exceptionally difficult to find the motivation to get things done that you simply don’t want to do.

Since my time outside of work is precious I really have no desire to spend one second of it at fucking Midas getting a headlight replaced. Therefore since I was close to needing an oil change when I realized the bulb had lost it’s powers of illumination, I compromised with my subconscious that once I had passed the 3,000 mile marker I would take care of both issues in one trip.

In the mean time I have been forced to drive to and from work with one headlight and deal with the paranoia that resulted from this crime. Furthermore, deep down I know that I am acting silly in this situation since there have been several times where I could have made things easy on myself, and gotten the headlight fixed, but simply chose not to make it a priority.

I mean within 24 hours of my iPhone having sudden hardware issues I was at the Apple Store in Estero meeting with a “Mac Genius” who solved all my problems, but that was my cell phone. Surely everyone from my generation understands my thinking, and the utter necessity of having a working phone, even though you can’t get in trouble with the law for being disconnected from the world for 15 minutes.

When it comes down to it I know that cruising around town with only one headlight potentially endangers not only myself, but also all other drivers on the road. Therefore I understand that if I can take an hour to get my cell phone fixed the day after it breaks, then I can certainly spare that similar amount of time and take my car in.

So, today, I swear to all my readers that I am going to take my car to the shop and get it completely checked out no matter what time I leave work or how tired I am. I am declaring here and now that no longer will I shirk my civic responsibilities due to apathy and stubbornness. I have seen the error of my ways and realize that sometimes in life I just need to “man-up” and take care of the things that seem like a burden.

Plus, since I reneged on my last compromise, I was forced to make a new resolution that I would take my car in before making an appointment at the Apple Store for them to fix my laptop, which as you can image catapulted getting my car fixed to the top of my priorities list.

The morning started out fine, then it started raining. It pretty much rained all day after that and the roads were pretty muddy, which made driving a bit challenging. I’m back with my first love, the Element, until the minivan gets a new bumper. They estimated 2 days. Ha! The last time I had my sensor fixed by the dealer, it took at least a week for it to arrive and a day to install it. Plus, I had to bring it back because they needed another part. A year ago, the poor car was at the shop for at least 3 months. Ugh! Well, there was a lot more damage and more parts were needed since the airbags went off. Of course, they also found more damage. Hopefully, this time it will be straightforward. No, my husband’s right. We can’t make this a Thanksgiving tradition. Interestingly, he said that there were 3 other guys whose wives also got into accidents and were dropping off cars in the morning. Guess it happens to the best of us.

One more thing I did not know about myself before I started those driving lessons: I like to speed. Yup, the miss- goody-two-shoes (doh!) likes to speed!

How weird is THAT?

The usual road speed limit in Australia is 60 km/ hour (and in built-in areas it’s 50). Me? I have to concentrate very hard keeping my speed to below 75. I’m slightly better in built-in areas; since I’m terrified of crashing onto those kids on cycles, and all that crappola (I really think it should have been the other way round: THEY should be scared of ME). But on main roads- I have a feeling that every other car speeds too and it’s not just me! Obviously, though it breaks my heart to admit it, there are more chances of me being wrong than right in this case.

I know how this can be fixed for good though: speeding tickets; seems like that’s the only way my innate indignation machine will get the necessary ignition.

It’s official, Texting while driving will be illegal in Colorado as of tomorrow. This is really a good idea.

Teens from one Denver high school are pledging not to text behind the wheel, a day before a new law takes effect making the practice illegal. – 9News

http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=127930&catid=188 ]]> http://ispill.wordpress.com/2009/11/30/emilys-rules-of-the-road/ Mon, 30 Nov 2009 22:36:27 +0000 ispill http://ispill.wordpress.com/2009/11/30/emilys-rules-of-the-road/

With fear and my hand clutching the GPS, I began driving the seven hours home to Nebraska from school. I am a junior and my last trip home was the first time I didn’t take my GPS, but I survived. A lot of people think seven hours is a lot to drive but it is not too bad. For about four hours, I fall completely in love with myself, my wit, my intelligence, my singing voice. I have to ask myself “Do people realize how great I truly am?” The last three hours kind of drag.

I recently started listening to books on tape while I drive. I feel like the dumber the better. They would be classified as chick books. The top two adverbs are incredulously and surreptitiously. When I go home, I always mention how I am listening to books while I drive to relatives. Of course they always ask what they are about. Shamefully, I admit, “Well this girl just married this gay man so he could stay in the country with his lover and now 10 years later she is engaged and never got a divorce or it starts with this girl sleeping with her best friend’s finace on her 30th birthday.” Even worse while I getting my ticket through the toll. My speakers rejoiced loudly in front of the toll lady with “Then we made love slowly, switching positions.”

When I get really bored, I make up stories with names on the signs. Segdwick the elephant, and his friend Mulvane. Calling people is always nice too. After a long conversation I think, “Was I driving that whole time? Because I don’t remember anything.”

Some quick things, QT’s are the best place to stop. I prefer paper towels to hand dryers, except for the Xclelerater which I imagine if you put your face under it, it is like astronaut training.

Someone once told me that the definition of “crazy” is doing the same thing over and over and expecting to get a different result. This holds true in a struggling marriage. The argument topics may change, but our reactions stay the same day after day, month after month, and year after year. Next time you get into an argument, why don’t you try reacting in a different way? For example, guys, act in a loving manner toward your wife and ladies, act in a respectful manner toward your husband. Then watch what happens. Comment here.

For more information, check out the issues section on our resources page or contact us. You can also call our toll-free Trucker Prayer Line at 1-877-797-PRAY (7729). We’re here for you.

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I was driving on 86th Street in Johnston a few minutes ago, in the left lane, stuck behind a slow-moving Chevy truck from 1975 or so. I was getting frustrated and continually checked my mirrors to see if I could pass the truck in the right lane and still get back to the left lane to make the turn I needed to in the future. I wasn’t able to do that, though, because the cars behind me had the same idea and kept passing me by.

I wanted to roll down my window and say, “It’s not me! It’s him! I want to go faster, too!”

Then I checked the speedometer. I was going 35 mph. What’s the speed limit on 86th Street? 35 mph.

The man who was going so slow I was embarrassed to follow him was actually doing what he was supposed to, and causing me to obey the law as well.

I realized that when I compare myself to others around me, I’m never going to be fast enough. I’ll always be trying to pass someone else, cut a corner, see what I can do to make myself look better. I’ll instantly notice what other people are doing, which will hold me back and keep me from whatever my goal happens to be.

But, that’s not the point.

There’s a story at the end of the Gospel of John after Jesus comes back. He tells Peter what’s going to happen, Peter complains a bit and Jesus replies, “What’s it to you?” It’s Jesus telling Peter, “Why are you so worried about everyone else? God has a plan for you. He has a plan for them. You worry about you. Leave them alone. It’s not about comparing yourself to them. It’s about living your life as God wants you to live it. Nothing more. Nothing less. Stop being concerned with other people’s standards and opinions. You’ll never live up to them, and even if you did, they’ll just raise them the next time until you can’t reach them anyway.”

For me, I need to remember to compare myself to Jesus. Am I doing what He did? Am I loving people the way He wants me to? What rules am I following? His rules–love God and love others–or the “rules” of the world: Do whatever you need to do to get ahead, even if it means breaking the law or hurting someone around you.

(After all, if you break the law, then you’re qualified to run for public office…just kidding! Just kidding!)

The best part? Even though I fail constantly when I try to be like Christ, Jesus isn’t embarrassed to be seen with me. In fact, He promises me that He has redeemed me and made me perfect in God’s eyes. He makes me perfect, and because of that, I choose to obey Him.

So, thank you, Mr. Obeying-the-Speed-Limit-Chevy-Truck Man. I learned a lesson from you today.

I’ll just need to remind myself of it the next time I’m caught behind you in traffic again.

This morning the wife and I were taking the kids to school and these pigeons were in the middle of the road. I didn’t see anything but maybe there was something they were all pecking at for feeding on or whatever. There were probably about 15-20 of them.

Anyway, we’re driving along and the car in front of us a mini-SUV type vehicle slams on its brakes. I was like WTF!? I then see all these pigeons slowly make their way airborne. The moment that vehicle passes they land in back of it and in front of us. My wife started to brake and I almost let a remark out but I didn’t. It was just kind of a soft grunt. I think she got the picture and kept driving.

I just don’t know why the hell ANYONE would brake for pigeons (squirrels or any small rodent-type animal) in the road. Let’s see: 15 pigeons = approx 10 lbs versus SUV = 4,000 lbs+. Who the fuck is going to win that battle!?

Okay, so maybe some people want to preserve the life of the parasites of the world. I get it but if they are going to risk getting hit from behind to keep from killing an ignorant fucking animal that stays in the middle of the road until the last possible moment because it doesn’t want to give up the road kill but will probably become road kill itself is just plain stupid!

As the end of 2009 approaches, highway safety attorney Douglas Horn would like to remind all Minnesota motorists that there is much each of us can do when we get behind the steering wheel to help ensure that we, our passengers, and other motorists on the roadways “arrive alive” at our destinations.

Horn talked with us today about distracted driving.

There is technology now being developed to prevent texting while behind the wheel.

Besides avoiding cell phone use, Douglas Horn has some more tips for drivers.