Oh wow, Khaleejis are here! Gulf Dwellers, I mean, escaping the extreme heat of the summer. Did the Jordan Times say 1,000,000 extra vehicles will be on our roads soon? Well, my pretties, ahlan wa sahlan, and spend spend spend - make your fiscal presence felt in our fair desert land!
I am endeavoring to drive with patience and calm this summer while our roads are overrun with errant drivers of Cadillac Escalades and Chevy Tahoes (SO, pray tell, why is everyone boycotting Subaru for selling cars to Saudi because women can’t drive there? Have you EVER seen a Saudi-plated Subaru?). Maybe our President and CEO of GM sold the Cadillac division to Subaru when we weren’t looking?
Back on topic.
Doing my part to make Jordan a better place, I will get back into my lapsed habit of praying for every driver in my sphere of influence who does anything remotely stupid, whether intentionally or incidentally (I count myself as guilty in both categories). It really does help, especially if you count to three first, take a deep breath, and force it out audibly between clenched teeth if you must.
The other personal discipline I am initiating is the Two Second Horn Rule. Is there anything more jarring than waiting for a stop light, and before the other light has turned, the guy behind you starts blaring his horn, as if maybe you were color-blind and weren’t counting the seconds between the opposite traffic’s red light AND making sure no one is running the red light before entering the intersection? NO, he wants you to respond immediately and be instantaneously disintegrated by a big rig flying by a full three seconds after he has a red.
Because it’s all about him.
I admit, if the woman in front of me is texting, or the shab talking on his cell and checking out the wildlife prancing down the street, I will blare the horn the minute the light turns. Time for me to repent.
Repentance isn’t just being sorry, it is changing behavior (which is why you should accept an apology and forgive if someone is sorry for what they did, but you don’t trust them in that realm again until change has been made. Forgiveness keeps you from internal bitterness, but not the mistake of falling prey to their bad behaviour again)
I am imposing a Two Second Rule before I toot that horn at a stop light or other such situation where drivers are stalling when they should be moving. As soon as the light turns green, I will count ‘one-one-thousand, two-one-thousand’ then I will gently toot-toot, rather than the rude HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNKKKKKKKKKKKKKk.
I got to practice my new discipline today. I was number three behind the line, number one was a taxi and was able to see the light (not pulled so far into the intersection he couldn’t see, as is the habit of some, who are counting on you to honk to let them know to go). Whew, I though, taxis are always jumping the gun, and I am third in line, so there is no way I will be the honker this time.
As we waited for the second direction to go, I saw his head tilt back on the headrest through the windows of the car in front of me. Poor guy, he must be tired, I thought. The last line of cars took their turn, no red-light runners, and the light turned green.
One one thousand. Whoa, he must be asleep at the wheel.
TWO ONE thousand. Did he have a heart attack? Car number two must be texting, as well as the other two lanes of cars next to us. HEELLLLLLOOOOOO!!! Green light!!
THREE ONE THOUSAND… What is up, people??? HHHHHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNKKKKKK (oops!)
I blared the horn and the taxi driver woke up with visible start. Then everyone else started honking too, for good measure.
Sigh. I guess it was half-repentance.
The Two Second Rule, #ReformJO
Drive. Pray. Love
So the Khaleejis are here… at least you only have to put up with it for one month since Ramadan starts August 1st this year and most Khaleejis will go back home as all bars and nightclubs will be closed for the month.
Aww, I’m glad you are working on it! It is not easy driving during the summer in Amman!
I love the line about shabab looking at wildlife…Just made me giggle
Your brave. Very brave…the traffic has been a bit maddening this week keep it up!
U haven`t seen this semi-khaleeji yet! Me coming in 3 weeks! Be afraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaid , lool
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Seriously though, thanks for this entry, it`s all bwt ” Treat others the way you want to be treated ,, easy yet hard!
Funny, the roads are calm and peaceful here in the gulf this summer…
Yeah, already seeing the writing on the wall… this summer will be a BAD traffic summer. And Blue Oyster, typically once they come, the Khalijiyiin don’t leave until school starts, which seems to get later and later and later and… Sigh. I’m planning on staying home the entire month of Ramadan as tired, hungry, annoyed people added to 3 times as many cars as usual will definitely not add up to pretty driving. Double Sigh (and double honk!).
People who honk like HOOOONNNKKKKKK make my life absolutely miserable. I’m told I make my life miserable because I let them get to me. I don’t give a d*mn about this p.c. lecturing — they make my life miserable and I blame them. And I fully believe such drivers are the main, if not sole, reason I hate living in Amman and want to move far, far away. May all of you receive your karma tenfold. The world isn’t revolving around you and your selfishness.
Hayyah, welcome to my blog. It is insane-making, isn’t it? It’s not all about your choices…can a puppy sleep when kids are poking him with a stick? But, when they rob your joy, then try a new tactic. Did you try any of these tips?
If not, we need to find you a group of expats where you can both extol the joys of living in Amman as well as rant abut driving. It really does help to complain in unison in community.