The Driving Thread

Traffic wasn't the issue going up 95 toward Washington yesterday. Roads were basically clear. Hyper-aggressive driving was the problem. I set my cruise to 78 in a 70 in the center lane and nearly got run off the road three times by different cars trying to pass me on right going 90-95 mph. Anything above 80 in Virginia is considered reckless driving. I was about the only one going under 80. The highlight was when someone flashed their brights and honked at me when I was in the right lane going 78 because someone was going about the same speed in the center lane. Fuck right the hell off with that shit.

I have absolutely noticed that drivers have been more angry and aggressive since the pandemic started.

 

I remember in the old days, driving back to Three Chopt Tech, that once you got past Dumphries/Quantico/Springfield traffic practically disappeared. My last couple trips from the DC area, I've taken the Fairfax County Parkway to 123 then to Occoquan to hit 95. Pretty steady, heavy traffic almost all the way to the 64 turnoff in Richmond.

 

Traffic used to dissipate after you got past Massaponax and wouldn't really pick up until Ashland. Nowadays, if you're heading back south, it's super hit or miss. You can get caught in a massive jam around Kings Dominion. Heading back down that way Monday and hopefully it won't be dreadful. Figure more people will travel on Sunday.

 

Nice little Sunday morning drive, eh?

 

Friday noontime. Got to LAX in decent time.

 

So I had to head into work tonight and was pleased that the drivers were sensible and courteous. No morons flying past 10 mph over the speed of traffic or being stupid. Maybe the driving snow had something to do with it. I do know that the real danger is when the snow starts melting and re-freezing overnight and people start getting out into it.

 

We still exist! Just got my annual alumni association year-end report and, fun fact, more than 9,000 living alumni live in California — fifth-largest total.

 

I would never ever have guessed that there are between 1000-2500 Florida State alumni in Massachusetts.

 

Merrimack River in Mass. and New Hampshire.

 

Define major. The Maumee flows north (east), as does the Cuyahoga. The Cuyahoga is apparently shaped weird and also flows south, but I think the river that was responsible for the founding of the EPA is major.

 

There's the Red River of the North, which defines the border between Minnesota and North Dakota. It flows into Lake Winnipeg. It's one of the most flood-prone rivers on the continent.