Winter has arrived

It has been snowing steadily for most of the day. It recently turned to rain, and the accumulated snow is slowly becoming more dense and slushy. The trees are showing the strain of the mass they now bear, and the power is flickering ominously.

People who have survived driving through a few inland northwest winters are taking it all in stride, but the newly-licensed youth and recent California immigrants are having some trouble. There is no need to creep along at a walking pace, but trying to drive at the speed limit is not advisable either. We who know from experience how to drive want to travel at speeds suited to the conditions, but find ourselves trapped behind over-cautious fearful incompetents and reckless morons.

I suppose as I continue to inevitably age, I may find my opinion of how many other driver are incompetent morons may increase. I was once an inexperienced youth myself, after all, and thought almost everyone else was a slowpoke. However, I am reasonably confident that my current experience and willingness to adjust my opinion of other drivers on a sliding scale based on their vehicles may be about right. If you have a rear-wheel-drive pickup, it may be wise to drive slower than someone in an all-wheel-drive SUV, for example.

But if you find yourself leading a procession of cars as you proceed at a snail's pace, maybe you should let them pass, OK? And if you're overtaking everyone on the road, remember that we will laugh if you skid into the ditch instead of gracefully swerving around us like you would if you had traction, and if you hit anyone while driving so recklessly, there will be hell to pay.