Commuting on the precipice

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

1. The car in front of me was swerving erratically. The reason was obvious: the driver was chatting on the phone, holding it to his ear while he drove. Which, of course, is illegal.
   He continued to swerve, and the next thing I knew he was gone — disappeared from the driver seat. By this time I'd changed lanes and slowed down to avoid the worst.
   Up he popped, he'd bent down for some reason while driving at 70mph on Highway 85. I let him get way ahead of me.


2. The white monster pickup behind me was unhappy with my speed. 70 wasn't enough, and then I slowed and moved right. He gunned past me, then moved all the way to the left. It was then that I saw it: in the back of the pickup, a large dog, standing. Not in the bed. Standing on the toolchest behind the cab. Standing on the toolchest and stepping way to the left so he could look out around the driver's side of the cab. On a pickup truck driving, now, about 85mph. The dog's feet skittered about and my heart pounded. He gingerly turned around and walked to the passenger side. The last I saw before the truck barreled out of sight was the dog bending his neck around the right side of the cab...
   as the truck sped down the left lane. The car pool lane. With only a single passenger.
   Perhaps he counted the dog. For the moment.