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Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Honk

As you all know I live in DC and commute just outside the city for work. This is a genuis plan because I do a reverse commute, making traffic bareable in a metro area where driving can be torture. Given that my commute is pretty short (15-20 minutes) and usually without hassle, I rarely have any stories to share. However, there is this one lady that I see (well, hear) driving most mornings and she is RIDICULOUS. I have been wanting to post about this lady for months, but every morning I get to work and get busy and every night I get home and forget. Today, I actually got a look at her so I can finally share this story with you!

I drive mostly on city streets (as opposed to highways), so my commute is full of traffic lights. The lights are not timed so that you can drive down the road without stopping, so I get stuck sitting at red lights every few blocks. Normally this would drive me crazy (and it did at the beginning of the year), but I know which intersections I have to sit at and the predictability soothes me. (Yes, I know I am crazy).

So anyway, this lady (who apparently commutes at the same time I do) honks her horn when a light turns green. That doesn't sound that strange right? I certainly honk my horn if someone sits at a green light. However, she honks her horn the SECOND the light turns green. EVERY SINGLE. TIME. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.

Over the past 5 months I have figured out what car she drives and that she is a woman, but I have never seen her actually "in action". Today I heard her honk at a red light about 1/2 way through my commute, so I knew she was around. At the next red light we ended up sitting in adjacent lanes, so I watched her. Just as predicted, the second the light turned green, even though the people in front of her were off their brakes and slowly accelerating, she honked.

The interesting thing is that she didn't look stressed. No angry face, no flailing of the arms, nothing. Her face was calm and relaxed. She doesn't lay on the horn...it is just a quick honk, like an alert. Is this how she learned to drive? Is she late every single day? What is her motivation? Are there other people commuting at the same time that also notice her? How did I get stuck with the crazy honking lady? So many questions!

Bottom line: It is so weird.

17 comments:

  1. I don't know who this crazy lady is but I'd like to give her a stern talking to.

    Or maybe find out where she works and show up with an air horn.

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  2. that drives me crazy when people do that! That is weird that she does it every time.

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  3. I was driving through DC a few years ago, and it was complete gridlock -- I mean, traffic going no where. People had turned off their cars.

    (Clearly, "driving" was the wrong word).

    anyway, there was a guy behind me just leaning on his horn and screaming.

    Dude, traffic isn't moving. Fuck off.

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  4. This is really, really strange. If I were you, I would want to jump out of my car, knock on my window and ask her why she does it.

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  5. Hahahahaha that's so crazy!! I have never heard of such a thing!

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  6. that is a very bizarre thing. i say that next time you try to drive behind her, and honk every time the light turns green. taste of her own medicine. maybe then she'll realize how crazy it is! :)

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  7. Sounds like a nutcase... I am commuting away from traffic to my job now here in MD ... and traffic isn't too bad except for when I have to get on and off 95 for about 1.5 miles. People drive so slow and its ANNOYING!

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  8. hahaha
    that's great
    maybe she thinks it's a public service just in case people in front are color blind

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  9. Maybe she has OCD and at some point in her life she went through a green light and someone almost hit her (or did hit her). SO now she has to honk each time she goes through an intersection? Kind of like a warning to other cars. That is just weird! I really can't think of a reason why! I know people who honk when they are running a light (turning red) but when the light turns green??

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  10. What a weirdooo!! At least you now know who she is and her actions. That reminds me of cab drivers in Chicago who honk ALL the time. Perhaps she used to be a cab driver?

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  11. Can you imagine working with this woman... ugh! I can't stand impatient people!

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  12. I have to agree with Jenn! Try to get behind her and honk at her CONSTANTLY. DC drives are CRAZY.

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  13. That's so funny- and what's even more interesting is that you see her everyday. Ironic how certain routines throw us together daily with strangers, ya know?

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  14. I have never heard of such a thing! What a weirdo! I am NOT a fan of the horn and I will do my darnedest to never use it...only in emergency situations :)

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  15. I hate when people do that! You should give someone at least ten seconds to move forward.

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  16. Wait, there aren't supposed to be any crazies in the city I'm moving to! hahaha

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  17. Oh my - I just keep laughing thinking about this.

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