I'm too busy to drive fast. I've learned over the years when I've tried to rush things they always seem to take longer.
On those days when I have a reason to get something printed off and sent out my printer seems to fail. When I worked in an office and had only one more copy to make it would be the time when the machine would jam up. When I'm facing deadlines my computer quits co-operating or the Internet seems to slow down.
If I was living in a Stephen King novel I'd swear technology was out to get me but I live a real life in a world greatly affected by technology. I'm still a procrastinator, but I've learned it is better to give myself a few extra minutes for each task than to stress about being late.
I've been reminded of the importance of patience numerous times over the past few weeks. I drive on the highway every few days. During the winter I expect to drive a little slower and use my cruise control less. It takes a few more minutes to make the drives, but I've been living in this province long enough to know waiting for a speeding ticket or tow truck takes longer than slowing down.
This year seems especially bad for vehicles in ditches. Often the first storm of the season serves as a reminder to slow down and for the rest of the winter there are fewer cars in those unfortunate situations. This winter started earlier than usual and it seems I'm seeing vehicles in the ditches every time I'm on the road.
Going a little faster can save only a few minutes on my regular drives. It probably adds up to hours over the course of a year, but the expense, stress and time it takes to get out of a snow packed ditch are worse.
This week I've seen several vehicles on their sides with ambulances and police cars on the side of the road. During one trip I was passed by a speeding truck. A few minutes later I passed it deeply imbedded in snow under the power lines several metres from the road still running. Less than a minute later I watched as a truck pass another vehicle going east and drove directly into the ditch and straight towards me stopping before it reached the westbound lanes.
There are places in my travels where the ditches are steeper and more dangerous and I'm grateful I haven't seen vehicles leave the road in those places. I'm on the highway because I have places to go andit is obvious to meslow and steady is winning the race.
