As I drive along the icy/slushy roads and freeways
I am appalled at fast, reckless drivers that are
oblivious to their own safety . . . let alone that of
others.
You just didn't go fast
back then
when I was growing up.
Snowfall in the Red River Valley
meant blowing and drifting snow.
Snow fences and windbreaks in the country.
Trucks carried chains to wrap around tires.
Slow traveling -
but you got there.
Cars had chains too.
Made irritable clanking sounds.
A pain to put on,
but their necessity didn't stop us.
Some cars had snow tires, with deep treads.
Then there were studded tires.
Roads had sand too,
a real premium in the Valley.
Go fast?
One just didn't.
But you got there - usually.
And stayed on the road - mostly.
Seldom crashed or ran into anyone.
Didn't need to.
We went slow.
More time to pay attention.
And we did.
And we got there.
Now, there are
strange ice-melting chemical mixes
platoons of militant 24/7 plows
polluted waterways and soil
splattering splashing chemical-soup baths
hitting anything or anyone near a road
salt-dust-chemical swirls
coat our lungs, nasal passages, and eyes
corroded cars on the ways to rusting out
pitted and spalled road surfaces
smeared wind-shields obscuring vision and
requiring gallons of washer fluid
potholes galore, eaten-away garage floors
high-speed crashes and spin-outs
multi-car pile ups, jack-knifed semis, and . . .
loads of dead or injured people -
people who never
get there.
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