Get him Dr. Phil's number! 
Cranky In Traffic
- Thread starter Pablo
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Classical/jazz music and stay in one lane.
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Does his air conditioning work?
Driving a vehicle with no AC in the heat... that's a recipe for disaster.
Seriously, though. Your friend may need anger management. Drivers like that are too dangerous.
Driving a vehicle with no AC in the heat... that's a recipe for disaster.
Seriously, though. Your friend may need anger management. Drivers like that are too dangerous.
I live in NJ, so I'm very accustomed to traffic living in the most densely populated state in the country. You have to develop patience. It's not always easy.
What pisses me off more than anything these days are the amount of people looking at their phones at a light and not going on green.
What pisses me off more than anything these days are the amount of people looking at their phones at a light and not going on green.
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Yes. People don't realize that I, too, am a NJ driver.
I just commented on someone's YouTube video I think they were in Tennessee or something of people cutting them off like many feet in front with no real aggression taking place I mentioned you should come to New Jersey to see some of the stuff that happens here. Unsafe driving really has not as much as you would think to do with either speed or other factors as such on wide open roads.. It's the New York style driving and aggressive cutting off motorists driving on the shoulder merging 20 miles over to speed limit within inches of someone else tailgating and just all around jerk driving behaviors that make an unsafe condition as well as drivers that just don't know how to mentally handle driving.
I encourage a thread on driving behavior. Nobody is "right."
Have you seen any videos from JoeyWhispers1776? He drive a truck, I think it's a dump truck, around the LBI area and comments on all the bad driving that he sees. It's very funny but he uses some bad words so I won't link it here.
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Here in Philly, and south Jersey, people don’t alternate merge. Often they try to box out someone merging in front of them.
I think the key to remember is that this is a random occurrence. Someone is always going to merge in front, and behind. So why get upset or be aggressive as if someone is cutting?
Driving and traffic simply isn’t personal…maybe that will help. If people are angry with others. This won’t work if it’s traffic itself causing a 4 mile ride to me half an hour, is the source of the anger.
I think the key to remember is that this is a random occurrence. Someone is always going to merge in front, and behind. So why get upset or be aggressive as if someone is cutting?
Driving and traffic simply isn’t personal…maybe that will help. If people are angry with others. This won’t work if it’s traffic itself causing a 4 mile ride to me half an hour, is the source of the anger.
I don't have road rage or general anger issues, but being stuck in traffic lights me up immediately for a number of reasons.
- Traffic is caused by people, and people are becoming dumber and less attentive and more distracted. So being made to wait for other people who have caused the problem drives me nuts.
- I hate feeling trapped, like I can't just get away from it when I've had enough. I'm stuck until the next exit or intersection.
- There is definitely something to the ADHD post earlier. I get extremely antsy behind the wheel on long boring trips, and it's even worse when stuck in a car and not going anywhere. This relates back to my previous trapped comment.
- My wife does not understand my impatience which doesn't help, especially when she feels the need to tell me (for example) that 'there is someone else going slow in front of the guy going slow in front of us' or whatever, as if I wasn't fully aware of that! which is infuriating. I had to explain to her that my ADHD brain is in overdrive playing a combination of chess and Tetris with every car on the road in front of us, which lane they are in, which lane they SHOULD be in, which cars that were in the right lane that have moved over into the left lane into the gap the slow driver ahead of me keeps leaving open, etc, all of that. I'm not just mad that the car in front of me is slow, it's not that simple. There's a LOT more going on in my head that's making me cranky when I drive and I can't turn it off.
- Having moved from upstate NY where people drove with a purpose to NoVA where people seem to have some ongoing competition to see who can drive the worst has broken me.
I used to enjoy driving, and now it's just something I have to deal with on a daily basis. I hate that the other drivers on the roads around here have taken that simple joy from me.
- Traffic is caused by people, and people are becoming dumber and less attentive and more distracted. So being made to wait for other people who have caused the problem drives me nuts.
- I hate feeling trapped, like I can't just get away from it when I've had enough. I'm stuck until the next exit or intersection.
- There is definitely something to the ADHD post earlier. I get extremely antsy behind the wheel on long boring trips, and it's even worse when stuck in a car and not going anywhere. This relates back to my previous trapped comment.
- My wife does not understand my impatience which doesn't help, especially when she feels the need to tell me (for example) that 'there is someone else going slow in front of the guy going slow in front of us' or whatever, as if I wasn't fully aware of that! which is infuriating. I had to explain to her that my ADHD brain is in overdrive playing a combination of chess and Tetris with every car on the road in front of us, which lane they are in, which lane they SHOULD be in, which cars that were in the right lane that have moved over into the left lane into the gap the slow driver ahead of me keeps leaving open, etc, all of that. I'm not just mad that the car in front of me is slow, it's not that simple. There's a LOT more going on in my head that's making me cranky when I drive and I can't turn it off.
- Having moved from upstate NY where people drove with a purpose to NoVA where people seem to have some ongoing competition to see who can drive the worst has broken me.
I used to enjoy driving, and now it's just something I have to deal with on a daily basis. I hate that the other drivers on the roads around here have taken that simple joy from me.
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I will definitely check it out.
I've considered getting a dashcam. There are a few (ones thar mount around the rear view mirror are ones attractive to me) to achieve HANDSFREE videoing. I still live a lifestyle that has me traveling and honestly I rather like it - until a steady obligation perhaps changes that. Until then? I'm a journeyman entrepreneur......
I generally have more a European "Autobahn" Outlook on road safety. Keep right except to pass "Rechtsfahren" etc
Sorry for late post.. had a call.
And. People road rage because there are overall not many (really any) armed drivers "In the Northeast." Other areas.. it's best to not engage in "Helmet mentality" or "Football mentality" because.. you may actually get shot. Let's throw that in there.
1. Move with a sense of purpose.
2. Don't speed in the rain.
3. Stay off the shoulder...
A thread on driving behavior, I have this all figured out and "everyone" from "somewhere else" "can't drive."
I get very frustrated in traffic jams. It's more of an anxiety from being stuck somewhere. Especially tight, limited access highways. I don't mind the delay itself.
More than once I've just pulled WAY off the side and decided it was nap time. In fact, I did that about 15 days ago while stuck in one on the thruway. I figured if I had a trooper come up to me I would have said hey it's an old car and started to overheat in traffic so I pulled around behind the bridge to stay far away from traffic. Another time I went down the off ramp and got right back on parking on the side of the on-ramp.
More than once I've just pulled WAY off the side and decided it was nap time. In fact, I did that about 15 days ago while stuck in one on the thruway.
I figured if I had a trooper come up to me I would have said hey it's an old car and started to overheat in traffic so I pulled around behind the bridge to stay far away from traffic. Another time I went down the off ramp and got right back on parking on the side of the on-ramp.
twouvakind
Site Donor 2024
Always anticipate traffic, if it does not occur.....enjoy the pleasant surprise.
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Get him a punching bag, sounds like the guy needs to relieve his anger/stress and doesn’t have a safe outlet for it.
Some observations I made on my myself:
1.) Exercise. If I do not get enough exercise, I become irritatable. I need both strength training and cardio - and by cardio, I mean low-intensity steady-state, outdoors. Preferably alone, although a competent crew in a rowing boat won't hurt much.
2.) Sleep. Sleep deprivation makes me grumpy - and irritatable. This means both duration of sleep, but the time of getting up as well. If my get-up time and my circadian rythm don't match, you are in trouble.
3.) Lack of coffee. See above.
4.) The car has a very serious effect on my emotional state.
If I am forced to sit in an underpowered ****box that I loathe, or if the ergonomics are off, then my driving and my judgement gets compromised. Cheap plastic interior. Uncomfortable seats. Weird noises. All this adds up...
If you spend a lot of time in a car, you need something that you like. But even amongst likeable cars there are differences. An old Saab 900 or BMW e46 or even a diesel (!) Alfa 156 are driver's cars. They are teasing you. Push a little harder. Play with the weight shifting. See if you make that turn in nicer, string the next three corners together in a nice, smooth, flowing line. Hit that perfect gearshift when double clutching. Highly satisfying - but dense traffic and their desire to be driven do not mix well. Five minutes in a traffic jam or just caught between traffic lights in a city and you'll get miserable.
For traffic, you need something soothing. An old S-class, for example. Wide, comfortable seats. An ocean of leather. Walnut wood. Everything in the cabin exudes quality and refinement. A big V8 under the hood with plenty of torque - but a soft voice, thanks to the immense mufflers in the exhaust system. Don't forget a very soft slushbox, err automatic gearbox. Maybe upgrade the speakers, get a soldering iron and feed a bluetooth adapter to the original radio. Then some classical music (preferrably neither Wagner nor Shostakovich). The gentle whisper of the eight-cylinder engine is now overlaid with an ether of sound. Far in the distance, at the end of the enginee hood, shines the three-pointed star. Exhale.
Whoever manages to get aggressive in such a car is a medical sensation.
5.) If I absolutely have to get somewhere at a time of day that I hate, I look for alternatives. Do I really have to take the car? Is there a train (and how reliable is that?) Can I just take my bike? Nothing beats the endorphine rush of moving on a bicycle while seeing people trapped in standing cars.*
*Riding a bike also helps with #1.) on this list.
1.) Exercise. If I do not get enough exercise, I become irritatable. I need both strength training and cardio - and by cardio, I mean low-intensity steady-state, outdoors. Preferably alone, although a competent crew in a rowing boat won't hurt much.
2.) Sleep. Sleep deprivation makes me grumpy - and irritatable. This means both duration of sleep, but the time of getting up as well. If my get-up time and my circadian rythm don't match, you are in trouble.
3.) Lack of coffee. See above.
4.) The car has a very serious effect on my emotional state.
If I am forced to sit in an underpowered ****box that I loathe, or if the ergonomics are off, then my driving and my judgement gets compromised. Cheap plastic interior. Uncomfortable seats. Weird noises. All this adds up...
If you spend a lot of time in a car, you need something that you like. But even amongst likeable cars there are differences. An old Saab 900 or BMW e46 or even a diesel (!) Alfa 156 are driver's cars. They are teasing you. Push a little harder. Play with the weight shifting. See if you make that turn in nicer, string the next three corners together in a nice, smooth, flowing line. Hit that perfect gearshift when double clutching. Highly satisfying - but dense traffic and their desire to be driven do not mix well. Five minutes in a traffic jam or just caught between traffic lights in a city and you'll get miserable.
For traffic, you need something soothing. An old S-class, for example. Wide, comfortable seats. An ocean of leather. Walnut wood. Everything in the cabin exudes quality and refinement. A big V8 under the hood with plenty of torque - but a soft voice, thanks to the immense mufflers in the exhaust system. Don't forget a very soft slushbox, err automatic gearbox. Maybe upgrade the speakers, get a soldering iron and feed a bluetooth adapter to the original radio. Then some classical music (preferrably neither Wagner nor Shostakovich). The gentle whisper of the eight-cylinder engine is now overlaid with an ether of sound. Far in the distance, at the end of the enginee hood, shines the three-pointed star. Exhale.
Whoever manages to get aggressive in such a car is a medical sensation.
5.) If I absolutely have to get somewhere at a time of day that I hate, I look for alternatives. Do I really have to take the car? Is there a train (and how reliable is that?) Can I just take my bike? Nothing beats the endorphine rush of moving on a bicycle while seeing people trapped in standing cars.*
*Riding a bike also helps with #1.) on this list.
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