Slightly Less Hypocritical
It’s been about 10 months since I made my personal pledge to stop texting and driving. Last year around this time you could definitely see me glancing at my blackberry to read a text or twiddling my thumbs while trying to hold the steering wheel straight. I would come up with all kinds of techniques to improve my texting skills: holding the phone above the dashboard so that my line of sight can stay straight, texting with one hand or doing it without looking at the keys. If you asked me if I thought I had a problem, I would definitely say “no”. But the truth is, I could have died.
A few times.
Whether it was a last minute realization that the car in front of me stopped short, a sharp curve in the road or the light turned red, I have had a few “oh s**t” moments behind the wheel. There was one common factor, in the split-second that I glanced at my phone to read or type, I lost focus and could have caused an accident.
You are 23 times more likely to get into an accident if you are using your cell phone while driving. I am not ready to die and I simply couldn’t look myself in the mirror if I killed someone over something so careless, so I made a vow to change. I am proud to say that I have nearly kicked the habit. I knew I couldn’t quit cold turkey so I told myself that I would only look at the phone when the car wasn’t in motion. At a red light for example, I gave myself the liberty to send or receive a text message. If I feel a need to send a text or look at my phone, then I pull over to the side of the road (something that I never did before). Every once in a blue I’ll slip up and divert my attention but I immediately catch myself. I’m not perfect (you should never use your phone while driving), but I am definitely heading in the right direction.
I am currently teaching a teenager in Philly how to drive – a really fulfilling experience – and I am showing her all of the ways to safely navigate the road. She’s a smart and responsible young lady and I don’t think that she will make the same mistakes that I made with my phone but it would break my heart if anything happened to her because some one else decided to read a text.
Are you part of the problem or the solution?
Pass this on. Save a life.
I REALLY need to stop using my phone, applying my make-up, eating, etc. while I'm driving. Arghhhh!! I have had tooo many oh sh*t moments and I need to vow to stop! Thank you for writing about this again!! I promise I will work on being part of the solution.
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