Speaking of which, an old friend who lives in Texas says the cops enforce speed limits pretty firmly. Confirm/deny? Because now I'm confused if you're not somehow exaggerating. It may just be around Austin, I dunno'.
I have two ways that I can get to work, and the one I regularly take leads to a light at a four way intersection. For me to get to work, I have to go left. There are two lanes that can go left, and one that only goes to the right. You see, this light is right in front of a shopping center. The only road that goes into it is the middle one... Legally. There is a broken line that leans into the left. There is a sign next to the light that says you can only. Go. That. Way. Nevertheless, I can only assume some people, wrapt with utter panic at having to drive a quarter of a mile before they can turn around, choose to ignore the possibility that the car right next to them is going left, and cut right across. This is rare.
Rarer still is when I'm going left with someone adjacently, they cut into my lane as I'm turning. Because there's space on the side for cars that enter into my lane as they're leaving the strip mall (OR IS IT HIS LANE GRAR SPORTS CAR SMASH TINY WHITE LEMON), if there had been someone waiting to merge, I would've had a t-bone, because I was literally left with no option but to cut to that side to avoid him. There is ample time to shift lanes before that light up ahead, and I've never much understood why people have to rush up to a red light when everything is mostly clear, anyway.
I don't honk as a matter of principle, but this was really the lowest point of one of my worst days on the job, and perhaps indirectly lead to me doing something fairly stupid that got a cop involved (though working overtime and being tired and without food was probably a factor, too, not that I think it would've mattered to the officer if I had cited those). Erm. Okay, maybe the thing with the police was worse?
But just in general, the annoyances come as quantity rather than quality as a result of me being a reasonably careful driver. I know how to use turn signals, and I'm pretty good with my speed (or at least I know when gunning it is going to make a difference). It's just a matter of choosing between what's safe to do and what's quicker and dirtier to do after I miss a turn or something. The curvy mountain roads with a narrow range of vision don't help with residential deliveries, certainly. Is this post over yet?