Before I retied It made no difference what time I left my house in the morning. The only way out of the neighborhood is a choice of one lane roads going in 4 different directions, only one of which headed toward the office. Fortunately, I worked all over, so the other escapes were sometimes handy. Regardless, those routes were usually stuffed, too.

The Baltimore Washington corridor is a nice place to live. I’ve been in this area all my life and would not want to live anywhere else. Civil War and Colonial History is all around us. We have access to every service available. The Federal Government is nearby for our benefits challenges. Roads are constantly being built and improved in a never ending cycle of traffic. I mean traffic. Lots of it. It’s just too much. My steering wheel and turn signal were crying “abuse” and my right shoe was screaming “Kiwi!”

On any given day you can spend 50% of your morning on the road, even though your profession is not driving. And what is the deal with all the traffic on Tuesday? If Monday were Tuesday, would Wednesday then be crazy? There are several ways around the traffic. Beltway, highway, roadway, subway, byway, anyway. No way.

Today the price of gasoline is running anywhere from $2.94 (Texas) a gallon to $4.87 (Hawaii) at no particular time of the year. I would gladly pay $3.50 a gallon if they could just stop the traffic. It’s everywhere and never goes away. Ever.

Maryland taxes are high, and the amount of tax dollars spent on our roads appears to be hefty, based on the amount of traffic. I can’t remember the last time 695 circling Baltimore and 495 smothering DC were not undergoing some renovation. Yet, with all the construction, we still have too much traffic. Is the intent to widen the roads so we can get somewhere faster, or to make room for more traffic?

It was a thrill to be stuck in the left lane with no way over to the right and wanting to get over there because I just knew it was quicker. Then I got in the right, and it stopped so the left could move faster. Traffic. How could a band name themselves Traffic?