Our weather last week remained well below freezing, so the snow on the ground refused to budge. The snow was so thick that, since I didn't shovel my driveway, my car lost traction and I couldn't make it up the slight grade into my garage. And the route I take to get my daughter to school (ok, it's two streets, but still) was never plowed and was very icy. With the temperature stuck in single-digits, there were many more parents driving their children to school than normal. I certainly understand not making your kids walk to even the mailbox in such weather, let alone several blocks to school. I do not understand the loss of all established driving etiquette.
I can understand letting your kids out of the car in the street; since traffic isn't moving and you have to be stopped anyway, you may as well let them out. I can forgive not using a blinker occasionally, because sometimes a car moves to create an unexpected opening along the drop-off curb. While I'm more stingy with my understanding here, I can even get over turning left directly in front of my oncoming vehicle. I guess when traffic is at an otherwise standstill, you go when you can. But the absolute worst transgression I encounter in front of the school is when parents spontaneously pull away from the curb - sans blinker - right in front of me. No gap between my car and the vehicle in front of me, just the audacious confidence that if they start pulling into traffic, I'll not hit them. Even on dry roads, these drivers don't leave me much room to stop; why on Earth are they taking this risk when the street is an ice rink?
We tell toddlers "Use your words," so they learn to communicate to us what they want. A vehicle's turn indicator uses this basic rule of toddlerhood: it communicates to other drivers what you want. Want to turn left? Use your blinker. Want to turn right? Use your blinker. Want to merge into traffic? Use your blinker. Want to pull away from your spot by the curb and have me stop instead of crashing into you? USE. YOUR. BLINKER. If I were more adept at driving on ice, like a professional ice road trucker or something, swerving to avoid you may not be as much of an issue. But since I drive a sedan, you can clearly see that I am not. Something else you can clearly see? My blinker.
