Crazy drivers...aren't we all?

WARNING...the following is a rant of the highest caliber!

Ugh. I hate taking my son to school. Okay, I hate taking my son to school in a CAR. The parking lot at his school is the most dangerous place I have ever seen. This morning I decided to park in the front parking lot instead of the teacher's parking lot where I usually park. Because I have been ill lately, I really needed to have my obligatory walking-my-child-to-his-classroom time as short as possible. He's in kindergarten, so dumping him off at the curb is not an option until he is in second grade, at least.

Pulling into the parking lot, I see the normal line of traffic waiting their turn to drop their kids off at the curb. I pull to the left to go to the parking areas just as three cars couldn't wait any longer and pulled out from that line. The only problem was I was occupying the space they wanted to occupy. After horns honked and fingers pointed, I continued on to find a parking spot. I found an empty spot just as another car's doors flung open and five kids jumped out of the car right in front of me as I was already entering the parking space. I sighed, remembering why I know what I'm doing is a bad idea, I should have parked in the teacher's parking area. After that car pulled out, another truck pulled in next to me, parking his front bumper so close I could not get out of my car. Damn, I was really losing my patience now. I rolled down my window and asked, no yelled at the idiot to back up and let me out of my car. I get another finger pointed at me. I still have my son in the back seat, so I let it go and wait. Except the fool in his truck refuses to move. I rearrange things in my car so I can crawl out the passenger side and take my child to class. I walked around to the front of my car when the jerk pulls out of his spot laughing and giving me the finger again. Yes, I caved and flipped him off right back and it wasn't as satisfying as I thought.

After dropping my son off at his classroom and getting back to my car, I was literally shaking when I got back to my car. Still, after the first bell rings, cars are still speeding around the parking lot so I decide to wait to move my car. I decided the way was clear enough to try to pull out and head home. I started backing up and I will be damned if every car kept speeding by, even when I thought I had the clear someone would fill the space. Finally I managed to extricate my car from the school parking lot and head home.

Whatever happened to driving carefully in a school zone? Why must adults speed through a school parking lot like it is the Indy 500? Whatever happened to good old-fashioned manners and looking out for each other? In this kiss-my-a** society we have developed, we've lost something along the way. I think we lost ourselves and our civility. What a sad day for us all.

I won't hold a grudge about anything this mornng. As a matter of fact, I'm going to do the opposite...make my negative experience into a positive one. I'll do something nice for someone today. I challenge you all to do the same.

'Nuff said.