A damp October Weekend..

I was up to Lewiston/Auburn for a brief, but busy weekend with a friend and my parents. The unthinkable has finally happened Lewiston/Auburn finally has a Starbucks. Its right across the street from the dastardly Wal-Mart, that is so big that it has its own weather systems. Lewiston also has a Quizno's... the latest and greatest in franchises that may one day rival subway (or so say many industry experts). I always take time to make observations that have anything to do with satisfying my belly.

Driving home tonight, the traffic was actually rarely sparse. I even used cruise control. While this makes things slightly easier, it can bring about entirely new frustrations.

Cruise control is a funny thing. Most everyone will want it as an option on their car (myself included) but then no one ever ends up using it. Most people don't go a steady speed on their own (once again, myself included). You get distracted, bored, concerned about cars, or your frustration at a few slow pokes encourages you to occasionally give the car some extra gas to maneuver around them. Or if you drive like I used to, prior to my speeding ticket last year, you go 85 when ever possible, strategically placing yourself next to other cars to prevent radar or lidar detection.
After a $200 speeding ticket, and an even more costly increase in my insurance... I began driving like a granny. In my defense I broke my own rules, and well, the speeding ticket was a result of that. I angrily passed a slow moving RV, in the right lane, going up a hill. Of course the officer was at the top of the crest. And like a fool, I was cocky and denied speeding when he pulled me over. I probably could have got off on a warning if I had an ounce of sense.
Anyway, now my idea of living on the edge is short occasional risky bursts of 75 miles per hour, while normally keeping it between 65 and 70.

Getting back to what frustrates me about cruise control; because you are going a constant speed you notice the irregularity in everyone else. They pass you, then slow down. You pass them and the process repeats and repeats. Because I'm no longer preoccupied with driving aggressive, the cruise speed I've set making most of my decisions, it frees me up to do something I never do. I begin noticing the people playing cat and mouse with me. Usually its young kids, (Yeah... I know I'm not exactly old... but I'm no spring chicken anymore either). Tonight this occurred with a Saab full of college aged girls (at another time in life perhaps I'd have cared); some dude with a "Free Tibet" sticker on his bumper; and a middle aged man who when he passed me, he had this testosterone laden lunge of the head to look and see who was driving. It wasn't to get back in the lane, because he never made that move. I'm assuming that driving a red sporty hatchback focus makes me likely to be a young woman. It is sort of a chick car I suppose. Anyway, he looked really pathetic. He was probably pissed off that I was actually some poser wannabe metrosexual rather than the object of his fantasies. Upon making the discovery he immediately turned around and gunned his "manly" Jeep Grand Cherokee. I suppose I could have been interested in who was driving that because odds are it may have been some sexy soccer mom... if that was my thing. Don't mind me... I'm just bitter at being a victim of car prejudice.
It could have sucked for everyone on the road if I was some sultry babe and the car in front of him hit the breaks or something.

I've never understood how everyone notices drivers of other cars. It isn't something I even do when I'm a passenger. I don't care about them, I'll never see them again, and lastly it just seems like a really bad idea. Just drive to your damn destination... I don't want to race, compete with, aggravate, or potentially date anyone who is driving in an anonymous vehicle next to me. Hey that's just my crazy view, but perhaps I'm just smoking crack.

Additionally I was thinking about the whole Free Tibet thing. I think China has compromised with several of the issues with the Tibet folk so I'm not sure it is such a "hot topic" as it was a few years back. However... Most of the people who have "Free Tibet" stickers are pacifists. I was just wondering how they expect Tibet to achieve freedom from a rising super power without possibly damaging sanctions or military action. But I think I'm thinking about it to much.

I always kind of thought it as sort of a joke, or a sarcasm by whoever came up with the slogan. Its the principle "You save Kuwait because they have oil, but don't bother with Tibet, because they only have goats". I think that is lost on many of the people that sport the bumper stickers. I think many of them really expect that the U.S. government needs to do something about it.

Every year new wide-eyed hemp necklace sporting college kids probably think that this is some current event. The Tibet "takeover" was completed by China in 1951. (I had to just look that up) I'd honestly have to look into this issue more, but I believe that the Dali llama, their spiritual leader is still in exile and tours the world. China now has the freedom of religion... Am I missing something? Why doesn't he just go back? Maybe he just doesn't want to return to the life of poverty and would rather get paid to give speeches and seminars? Naahh... that couldn't be it.

I'm sure there is a lot more to this, and what bugs me is that the "Free Tibet" sticker is nothing more than a symbol that the token Greenpeace/patchouli/tapestry/vegetarian/artist kid has, and they know absolutely nothing about it. I know nothing about it, and yet I probably know more than the folks with the bumper stickers.
For the record I liked tapestries and patchouli incense in college, but I never had a "Free Tibet" sticker.

I have to get up very early tomorrow for "Orientation" at work, and I really don't want to go to bed, despite being exhausted. Ahh, such is life.

Anyway