Heading to the Detroit Auto Show a couple of weeks ago. It was a Bright, Sunshiny Day (thank you, Johnny Nash) heading westbound on the 401 just west of Chatham around 4:30 on a Sunday afternoon, so the sunlight was right in my eyes.
This is why my Dad always told me to live east of my work. He did; I work mostly at home - not much of an issue.
So, polarized sunglasses on - check. Sun visors deployed - check. I'm having to squirm around a little as the road curves to keep that sun hidden by something.
(Whatever happened to those dual sun visors we saw for a while? The original Ford Taurus was the first I recall with those. Or even the extendable telescopic kind?)
Anyway, I caught up to this flaming idiot driver in a silver Toyota Matrix.
No, it wasn't his car that made him a flaming idiot.
Although, he only had his DRLs on. No taillights, and with the car back-lit like this - plus the fact that his car was all alone going slowly in the left lane - it was clear we were not dealing with a rocket surgeon of a driver here.
But what qualified him for the Idiot Hall of Fame?
I still have trouble believing this - as I passed him on the right, I saw that he had allowed his passenger to hang something (a towel, jacket, sweater, it was difficult to tell) to block the sun.
NOT covering the right side window, which is dangerous enough, but nearly the entire right half of the windshield!
Blocking fully HALF of his forward vision - on a high-speed freeway!
How does someone like that have enough functioning brain cells to fall out of bed in the morning, let alone pass a driver's test?
OK, so it was uncomfortable for the passenger to have his nap compromised by the sun.
Boo Hoo.
Wear sunglasses.
Get a long-peaked baseball cap.
Or one of those little sleep masks you get on airplanes - you can also buy them in travel stores.
Or sit in the back seat.
But fer cryin' out loud people, don't drive totally stupid AND half-blind too.
Need I remind you all again, the life you save - might be MINE.
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