Driving Distractedly

"Distracted driving laws enforced" was the first sign that I noticed when I crossed the border into the next province. Oh no!! I was eating a sub sandwich while I was behind the wheel, with a Booster Juice in my drink holder. Were they going to charge me for being distracted while driving??? I gobbled down my lunch and drove with both hands on the wheel and my eyes on the road.

I was falling asleep at the wheel. I was an hour away from my destination. Tim Hortons was minutes away. A cup of coffee would be a very good investment. I drank the first part of the coffee in the restaurant. The part that I always spill down the front of me. I thought I could pull off the act of drinking the last part of my coffee while I drove. Before I left the parking lot, I took a sip and dribbled coffee down the front of me. So I took another drink and slopped some more. Third time's the charm, I thought ... and took another gulp. For heaven's sake! Must I make the exact same mistake three times before I realize that the problem could be with a faulty lid?? It's no wonder they thought I couldn't handle my job position at work!!!

I rummaged through my bags for the wipes that I knew that I had packed. I knew they were there somewhere. But as it was with spilling my coffee three times before I realized I was expecting a different outcome by doing the exact same thing ... I looked and re looked in the exact same location for the wipes that I couldn't find.

Eventually, I found the wipes safe and sound in a zippered compartment of one of my bags. So began the struggle of trying to wipe the coffee stain off of the one and only light colored jacket that I had brought along.

I thought to myself "I should have just kept on driving!" ... but quickly realized that had I kept driving while I was in the early phases of nodding off to sleep, I could have had a lot worse problems than a coffee stain to deal with. 

My eyes were wide open to the fact that a small spilled coffee incident could have saved a life. I was alert from the dose of caffeine and the added shot of reality.

I drove the last hour with my eyes wide open and without distraction. I arrived to my destination safe and sound. Just a small coffee stain on my lapel to remind me of the perils of distracted driving.

It was a cheap lesson.