On Autopilot

What a thrill it was when as a child we would be driving in the car and pass someone in another car that I knew!!! This happened often when we'd be leaving the subdivision and would approach the car of a neighborhood friend. Waving frantically, I'd grin out the window, hoping my friend would see me. What were the chances that we would both be riding in cars at the same time and the paths of those two cars would intersect?

Then there was the phase when my mother would be driving and see somebody that she knew went to school with me. She would honk at them as I would shrink down in the passenger seat and hope that whoever it was didn't recognize me and the fact that my mother was so incredibly mortifying.

Once I got my license, seeing a friend in another car in the road became an invitation for a challenge. I specifically remember racing my friend Garrett down Highway 70 to see who could make it to the bowling alley first. Granted, I was driving my mom's Plymouth Caravan woody-style mini-van and he was driving his mom's minivan, but we were hitting over 90 mph in those suckers. Hey, you gotta work with what you got!

Now, I'm never quite sure what to do when I see somebody driving that I know. I would say that at least one or two mornings out of the five day work week, I end up next to, in front of, or behind a co-worker. Do I wave? Ignore them and continue driving? Rev my engine and take off when the light turns green?

Usually, I just kind of stare straight forward and act oblivious (which really isn't all that much of a stretch). I mean, I don't want to be rude, but if I wave once, do I have to wave every single time they pass me or I pass them on the rest of the way to work? That would make me feel more dumb than pretending like I don't notice them.

Although it would be much more fun to drag race to work every morning!