Confessions #3: I only let other cars in because I hope for a courtesy wave

Picture this. You’re driving to work/college/home. It’s peak hour. There are many other cars sharing the road. There’s a spot where cars are known to park in the left hand lane. You duly merge ahead of time, because you used to live on that stretch of road and know accidents happen there. It even has a “black spot” sign that acknowledges that the government knows accidents happen there but can’t be bothered installing a “no parking” sign because that would be expensive. But wait, they installed a black spot sign there… anyway.

You have merged into the middle lane and you decide to be charitable. You let other cars in. Helping them to avoid a certain fender bender. And what? No wave. That’s just rude.

Really. The courtesy wave. That’s what I live for on the road – I really am quite a courteous driver. But only because I want you to acknowledge that I’ve made your day that little bit easier by removing the stress that comes from an impending obstacle, or perhaps a long delay at an intersection. Perhaps you’re ignoring the road rules and I’m cutting you some slack. Know this. I only do it in the hope that you’ll either wind down your window and wave, or hold up your left hand under your rear view mirror in the universally accepted and acknowledged manner.

That is all.

Comments

dave miers says:

i’m with ya.

do you know the courtesy thing for trucks and buses on freeway/motorway/highways?

if they overtake you, you flash them in once their tail is clear. then they do this fancy left right left indicator trick.

i live for it, and sometimes drive slower than the speed limit to fabricate the scenario!

Nathan Campbell says:

That is so incredibly awesome. I’m going to go freeway driving just to check it out…

dave miers says:

what’s more – the good news is that there is a 90% success rate!!!! it hurts when the 1 in 10 doesn’t acknowledge your kindness, but it’s at those points you need to remember that the next 9 will do the sneaky sneaky left right left light flash!