Traffic School

I got a ticket in the worst spot, I-15 through Utah County.  I was going too fast, having a fun conversation on the phone and didn't notice my speed.  Deserved it, but that doesn't make it any less annoying to have to pay a double fine ($290!) plus the cost of traffic school.

Last time I was in traffic school was because I was a devoted husband and I went with my wife when she got a ticket.  That was many years ago, and we went to a classroom and listened to a police officer give three hours of driving safety.  But technology has moved on since then, and now traffic school is online.

It's quite the package too.  They've come up with a good way to keep me from cheating.  You have to spend at least three hours online "in" traffic school, but with a limit as to the amount of time you can spend on any one page.  You really have to go through all the material and answer all the questions.

I started on Sunday morning, but three hours is a really long time.  In fact, it's as long as church.  I'm bringing my iPad anyway, because it has the scriptures and all the manuals on it.  And it's hard to hear in Elders' Quorum anyway.  So, thanks, Steve Jobs, you really made church productive.  I got through the rest of traffic school no problem.

And I actually liked learning some things.  I found out that no one ever actually has the "right-of-way," but rather drivers in certain situations (like turning left) must yield the right of way to other cars.  I also found out that failure to drive defensively can get you cited in the event of an accident even if the accident was the fault of someone who failed to yield the right of way.

Anyway, I thought I would be a better driver--more careful, more defensive.  But today when I saw a car in the right turn only lane who wanted to get into my lane, I could have let him in, but I didn't because it was my right-of-way.  And this was after I sneaked into the right turn lane to get around a long line at the traffic light and then sneaked back in when I found a small, but large enough, opening.

Some habits are hard to break.