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Observation 5.2 January 17, 2005 I received such a great response from people regarding my last observation (you guys are sick!), that I was motivated to do another observation about one of my many other quirks. I'm not sure how many people will agree or disagree with this one, or if people will be as interested, but I feel very strongly about this one. In my opinion, the blinker, or turn signal, is put into a car for a reason. One should always use it when changing lanes, turning at an intersection - heck, I wish they had straight signals, so that you would have to use it when you were going straight....I feel really strongly about this. I don't have concrete numbes, but I think less and less people are using turn signals, and it really rubs me the wrong way. The most annoying "non-use" of a turn signal is when a person is making a left-hand turn when there are two lanes, and one is kind of like a passing lane. It happens to me on Mac Dade Blvd. all the time. And I know as soon as I get in the left lane that this will happen to me, but I continue to do it, because (a) the old ladies with the blue knuckles that are driving the oldsmobiles in the right lane are travelling at a whopping 5 miles an hour, or (b) I need to get home because I didn't want to drop chow at work. So, I'm driving along and the person in the El Camino in front of me who, just seconds ago, was checking in at 50 miles an hour, and politely asking me to get in the right lane by honking his horn, flashing his blinkers, and giving my car an exhaust test, now has slowed down for no apparent reason, and now is at a complete stop. I honk my horn, and he gives me this "what the hell are you honkin' your horn at" look to me, and then eventually makes the turn. Hmmmph, I guess I should've used my ESP. I should know that someone is about to turn even when this person doesn't feel like using the turn signal. I even get pissed off at people who are in the turning lane but do not use their turn signals. I know you are in the turning lane, and it is inevitable that you will turn, but still. Maybe I'm a little to over the top with this one, but just use the damb turn signal, even though we know you are turning. In this society when people are driving their cars, on the phone, on the computer, with the t.v. on, all in the car, a turn signal might grab their attention - especially if they are in oncoming traffic. Trust me, it may take a wee little bit of effort, but use the turn signal in the turning lane. Another really annoying one is when on the highway, especially with a decent amount of traffic, when somebody tries to pull in front of me without using the turn signal. I don't experience road rage very often, but when this happens, I feel like following this person home, waiting for this person to get out of the car, and then hitting this person with my fist so hard that this person will have to pull his/her pants down in order to brush his/her teeth. First of all, it is common courtesy to put the turn signal on when going into another lane, especially if somebody else is occupying it. By using the turn signal, you not only signal that you would like to enter this lane, but you show respect to the other drive by "asking" permission to get into this lane. By not doing this, it feels to me that this jerk on wheels just pulled a fast one on me. I can't explain it any better than that. It almost seems like the person cheated. I hate it, I hate it, I hate it! There are other forms of not using the turn signal, such as when somebody is in the right lane and is planning on turning, but for one reason or another, either doesn't want anybody else to know, or doesn't feel that it is important to anyone else. Ummmm, well, if I'm behind you, and you are travelling at 2 miles an hour, I am probably going to get angry, cursing up a storm, because I have no idea why you are travelling at a whopping 2 on a 35-mile-an-hour road. Just show me the courtesy of turning your signal on, so that I can either change lanes or at least be comfortable with the knowledge that you are going 2 miles an hour for a reason. Of course, the people that have to go left first in order to go right piss me off even more, but that may be a topic for another day. Feel free to respond to this, especially you butt pirates who don't use turn signals. Please, let me know why you think it is important not to use them. I need the insight. Would you like to see other observations? Go to here: |