The police officer rolled his motorcycle up to look into the car between us as we all sat at the traffic signal. He turned on his mic and said, “Are you serious right now? Are you really talking on your phone with me right next to you?” I couldn’t make out the rest of the conversation, but the driver got a (lengthy) verbal warning about holding his cell phone while driving.

California has a hands-free law and a law against texting while driving, but I have to say, I see an unsettling number of drivers holding phones while talking and texting as they barrel down the road. Some of them look up at the road very seldom.

The incident with the police officer happened about a month ago, but the memory of it surfaced yesterday as I started out for a morning walk with the dog. My daily route involves navigating past a sidewalk that ends.

Where the sidewalk ends (but perhaps it isn’t Shel Silverstein’s)

Many mornings, I stop right at the fence and wait for a break in traffic before I venture out into the road and then back onto the gravel along the side of the road.

Yesterday, a car zipped past with a guy holding his cell phone to his ear. Then, I watched a car drive from the intersection ahead, weaving almost imperceptibly. The woman was older than I am, maybe late fifties. When she got right up to where I could see into her car, she was staring down at her phone texting. I’m not sure she ever saw me. Continue reading →