A calmer, gentler commute

A New View

Angela Connor is Managing Editor for User-Generated Content at CBC New Media. She recently relocated to the Triangle from South Florida with her husband and two young daughters. In this blog she shares the ups, downs and uncertainties that come along with making North Carolina her new home.

Posted: March 19, 2007

I’ve noticed something different about myself recently.
It seems that I’m a little calmer when I get home from work these days and I don’t feel nearly as rushed as I did just a few short months ago.

(Friday's beltline debacle excluded, of course.)

I’ve pondered this phenomenon for the last few days and even mentioned it to my husband. We both put some thought into it and discovered that it has everything to do with traffic.
That’s right.
My pleasant demeanor, relaxed mood and laid-back attitude is directly related to the lack of congestion and road-rage free commute I now experience having relocated to the triangle area from a very traffic-heavy, crowded and stressful South Florida.

I know that some of you may disagree wholeheartedly with my assessment of rush-hour traffic, particularly if you grew up here and can remember a time when heavy traffic was virtually non-existent.
If you fit into that category, let me just say that I’m sorry that the good old days are now a distant memory and in no way am I diminishing the perils of your commute.
But trust me it could be so much worse.
If you think this is bad, find your way to I-95 and head South until you reach Broward County.
I’m sure you’ll have a brand new vocabulary full of interesting expletives that you had no idea you were capable of using.

In the meantime, I’ll continue to look forward to my morning and evening commutes and relish the fact that I am no longer an arm-flailing, cell phone-flinging mad-woman intent on getting to my destination by any means necessary.

2 Comments

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I agree that traffic could certainly be worse (think Washington, D.C.). It is not the congestion that bothers me so much as the way people drive. I am always amazed that I do not see a major wreck happen either in front of me or in my rearview mirror, every day! I think the combination of alot of college kids, senior citizens, country folk (and I am one of them) and a mishmash from all over the US makes for very dangerous driving conditions. I have seen more people cut across four or more lanes of traffic at the very last second, going 80 miles an hour, to exit. I see this at least once a day and I can never figure out how they keep from wrecking. I think the saying must be true that God looks out for the young, the old and the idiots, cause we sure have our fair share here (idiots, I mean)! Is the driving part of driving any better in Broward Co.?

mothermac
March 19, 2007 6:39 p.m.

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Thanks for helping us keep it all in perspective. I used to sit on the front porch next to Hwy. 64 at Knightdale with my grandmama on Sunday afternoon and count cars. 151 in a minute was a large number. Still, you're right. It could be worse.

Madame Carlotta
March 19, 2007 12:06 p.m.

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