Driving Notes

AARP offers a safe driving course for its members. I'd been putting off taking it, even though it gives me a whopping $49 off my annual insurance premium. For three years - are you more impressed now?

From having driven commercially for 29 years, somewhere around 2 million miles, and being required to take defensive driving courses every two years - which never changed except for the person teaching them - I doubted I had anything to gain from signing up except some nebulous unknown discount. The big stuff was indelibly engraved in my brain ; avoid head-on collisions by going right, aim for a bush rather than a tree if given a choice, follow the 2-second rule for distance, adding a second for each complicating factor like a motorcycle or bad weather. There was the refresher for rules of the road, like signs and who yields when, and the vehicle check before getting in.

That last I mostly ignored as well, since my cars told me if tires were low, they were always mostly new and didn't leak, plus I checked the pavement as I backed out of wherever, and was dedicated to proper tire replacements, and maintaining oil changes which got me regular notices of what fluids needed topping off about every 2-3 weeks. By driving that many miles, I got a feel for each vehicle and could tell if tires were getting low by how they rode, as well, after a few years, as to which noise meant what. I could take my car in and tell the mechanic what was wrong with it. Once my regular mechanic quit, the series of strangers receiving my car ignored what I was telling them was wrong, but came back with the information that the problem was whatever I'd said it was. But hey, just a girl, right?

A couple months ago I finally signed up for AARP's course, online and with 60 days to complete, easy to get through, and offering all the opportunity anybody would need to repeat any part of it, whether a page or a chapter, even the whole thing.

It was worth it. I was surprised. Sure, the first bits were repeats of defensive driving lessons, though the 2 second rule was changed to 3 seconds. Reasonable enough. Then came the lessons on what kind of things are in new cars these days. I don't plan to ever buy one, but rear backing views, preemptive braking, and occasional audio map directions, now that those systems are more right than wrong, might prove beneficial. I might also consider something with a seat that keep me high enough I can see the curbs before/as I turn. Maybe.

The most helpful parts were on changes as we age. After I got over laughing at the people scared of driving at highway speeds or anywhere near a semi, and telling myself I cured all snow/ice issues by moving to Arizona, I settled down and found out what to look for in myself which could in the future cause safety issues behind the wheel. I probably ought to stop putting off that yearly eye exam (due to covid - now that masks are required by all in doctor's offices here) and check my peripheral vision and whether it's changing. Are all those drivers who appear out of nowhere as crazy as I think they are? Well, sure, but do I need to pay more attention due to my eyes or their bad habits?

The answer is, as always, "Yes."

An extra note here. I took Rich to a place he need to be this morning. Part of the route is undergoing repaving. Today. I find I am perfectly capable of registering consciously that fact, and still wonder after a few blocks what is wrong with my car making it smell like something's overheating?

Another extra note: During the garage sale, my low tire pressure light came on. A quick visual check informed me it was drive-able for setting out the signs, but later that day It took it in for air, one of those free top-ups offered with my oil changes, requesting they let me know which tire was  low so I could keep an extra eye on it. The result was, "All of them were down 2 pounds." He went on to explain that it was the result of the high pressure we were having.

OK. The high pressure would be pushing on the outside of my tires, squeezing them, thus making them raise their pressure, trying to find a way to escape. Their size would be different, but we weren't checking size. Now I can get failing physics or not even taking it in the first place, and settling for a job putting things in automobiles for close to minimum wage. Somebody has to do that. But with filling tires as part of that job, how do you get air pressure exactly wrong? After all, you push on something, it pushes back, with as much pressure it already had to push back with. When there are leaks, it doesn't push back quite as hard because there isn't as much for pushing. Now if we want to talk air temperature as a cause.... But it's not winter down here, so there's no excuse but a very slow leak to account for the low tire pressure.