Cardinal Rules of Lane Changing on the 405 (plus a bonus)

1. Never, under any circumstance, use your blinkers - the pretty light might distract other drivers causing them to hit you.
2. Always STOP briefly as you change lanes. This is especially difficult to master as you might often get hit by the car behind you. The true 'lane-changer/stopper' will be able to change lanes, stop and go just as the car behind is about to hit you. An expert will be able to get the car behind their car to hit the car behind them; that's powerful!
3. DON'T LOOK! You might see that you are surrounded by a sea of drivers and this might intimidate you from changing lanes. Don't forget, it is your inalienable right to change lanes.
4. Wait until the very, very last minute to change lanes before your exit. You must change a minimum of 2 lanes. 1 lane is for rookies - it would only show an amateuristic level that every other driver will instantly recognize. You might become easy prey for those seeking 'expert' status in point 2.

Bonus:

• HONK, HONK, HONK - if you don't like how someone just cut you off. Nevermind the fact you just did it at least 5 times in the last 3 minutes of weaving. No one is allowed to drive as poorly as you and you should let them know this.

There might be more situations that I'll keep adding to my list as I continue my 'commuting' research. Otherwise known as MDV (Moronic Driver Venting).

Drive-'o-pedia I

Most of us have at one point or another driven on a freeway. If you are from California, in particular southern California and more explicitly the LA area, you know what I'm talking about.
So, in the time that I've spent commuting I've noticed certain 'characters' on the road. The following is my attempt at compiling & recording these phenomenal human traits, displayed ONLY while driving.

The peek&assault strategy:

• This car will give you the feeling they want to change lanes by the way the car swerves towards your lane. They won't signal but by now you you might think you are becoming clairvoyant due to your fantastic defensive driving skills you have acquired in the 1.5hrs you've been driving. Since you are in a good mood you'll leave enough space so that they can change lanes w/out causing an accident. Then... for a good 10min, during which you cover a whole 1/2mi, you will wait for them to change lanes. In the mean time other more savvy drivers, who you did not see coming and never used their turn signals, have moved in front of you (for some reason your clairvoyant skills are only good on that one driver). After over 10min you become aggravated that they still don't change lanes and discard your powerful psychic skills as just a glitch. You start to move close to the vehicle in front of you and as soon as your hood is right next to their bumper, they suddenly decide to change lanes. Not only do they almost hit you, but they STOP as soon as they change lanes (see cardinal rules of lane changing). At this point you are severely annoyed and your good mood has been ruined. You have now become a victim of the Peek&Assault strategy. (but wait! there is hope - the P&A anonymous group meets every Wednesday at your local overpriced gas station. Please check the website as we have ever competing numbers of gas stations willing to host this meeting).

Stay tuned for the next 'trait' I'll be posting next week. Until then, drive safe!

Workout Weekend

It's Monday morning and for the Nth time I wondered where my weekend went. Is there a vast weekend black hole somewhere between Friday & Monday? Should we appease the god of time in order to get more frequent 3-day 'feeling' weekends? (and I don't mean sucking up to the boss).
On a more practical level, however, should we rule out these fantastical science fiction notions, is it possible that time flies both quicker & slower over periods when we have have much to do? For example, has a morning ever flown by and by lunch time you've accomplished so much? (or at least it feels like it). If it really flew by then how did you get so much done. On the contrary, ever been stuck in a meeting that drags on and on? It might be the same period of time, and yet the results are completely different.
So, what is better? not remembering how the morning felt because we were so busy and so enthralled by our work that lunch time came and we didn't even notice? or, is it better to be agonizing during that long unproductive meeting? Technically we are supposed to 'stop & smell the roses' - which just means live more in the 'now'. So, is this living in the 'now' what changes our perception of time? Meaning, perhaps we are enjoying ourselves so much being busy that being bored to death at a meeting is just torturesome. I of course don't have an answer... but I sure feel puzzled by feeling good about something I can't remember well as opposed to feeling bored-out-of-my-mind in the 'now'. I'm not making fun of the 'now', I think it's very important; I just can't seem to find it attractive all the time.
This weekend was one of those puzzling times... got lots & lots & lots done... slept like a baby... worked out like crazy. Now it's Monday and I wonder... where did my workout weekend go?