5 lanes of fail

I have recently spent a few weeks driving across the United States.  I have come to the conclusion that our highway system is flawed.  Between cities miles and miles of highway exist that are composed of two lanes in each direction.   This system works well but even here two problems become clear.  The first is a differential speed limit between trucks and cars.  The second is the misuse of the left-most lane.

As you approach a city, the highway changes.  The number of exits increases dramatically.  However, what is more problematic is an increase in the number of lanes.  In some cases five lanes are used.  The misuse of lanes also increases.  In California and in select other areas the issue is further exasperated by inclusion of an HOV lane.

The results vary depending on the amount of traffic, but the same patterns seemed to emerge again and again.  I very much hope that the HOV lane has increased the use of carpooling.  However, the merging and changing of lanes is downright frightening.  The problem of individuals misusing the left-most lane simply shifts over and is worsened by those passing through it.

The left lane is not the only lane that is misused.  The lane directly right of it becomes filled with many individuals who simply wish to avoid switching lanes and merging.  An unfortunate result of this is a great deal of passing on the right.  With passing now happening on both sides, a group of drivers become more obvious.  They attempt to weave through traffic.  Although this can be accomplished on a motorcycle in what I consider a dangerous way, the result for any vehicle with more than two wheels is simply an act of futility.

All in all, the lesson is simple.  If you find yourself driving and you are not in the right lane, answer three simple questions:
1. Is the right lane ending?
2. Are your preparing to use an exit on the left or make a left turn?
3. Are you passing another vehicle?

If you answered "No" to these 3 questions, you are doing it wrong.

Irretrievably broken

This is not a phrase I would use.  When I first saw these words, they seemed disconnected.  I was not certain if irretrievably was even an accepted English word.  After verifying that the people of Oxford acknowledged it, I still felt that the pairing was bad.  Wouldn't "irretrievably" pair better with "lost"?  Wouldn't "irreparably" be more in tune with "broken"?  I personally would have used "broken beyond repair".

But in the end, the meaning was clear regardless of the word choice.  Something that once was is no more.  Something that had come to define me was gone.  I believe I saw the odd word choice and started looking for a loophole.  A last bit of denial.

The truth is that words in print changed nothing.  Our society puts great emphasis on paper.  I put great emphasis on symbols.  In this case, the symbol is a document.

Music...

+ k.

That is often how I indicate the spelling of my last name.  Whether by coincidence or a subconscious desire to meet the expectations of others, I have always surrounded myself with music.  It has become interlaced with memory.  "I Loved Her First" by Heartland will always be linked with my sister's wedding.  "Pinch Me" by Barenaked Ladies will always transport me to an apartment in Baltimore.  "My Immortal" by Evanescence makes me horribly aware of a woman that walked away.  "Rest Stop" by Matchbox 20 has become the theme of feelings I didn't have.

There are moments that I think should be punctuated by music that aren't and songs that don't resonate but are forever linked to events in my mind.  As time goes on, my iPod becomes filled with mnemonics.

As "Say Something" by A Great Big World becomes linked with the current chapter in my life, the pure evocative power of the music is lost.  It is both amplified and degraded.  I no longer hear the melody or the lyrics.  It does not wash over me but instead becomes merely a reflection of a thought.

I want the music back.  I want to feel the joy, the energy, and the sorrow of well-crafted songs. I want to feel the disappointment of a near miss.  I want to skip a song or change the channel based on the skill of the performer or my mood rather than past events.

For now, I will seek out new music.  I will allow myself to fade into the past from time to time, but spending too much time in the realm of memories has always seemed unhealthy to me.