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I always believed there were just four seasons: winter, spring, summer and fall. Apparently there is a fifth season known as the "Driving Season." It reportedly begins over the Memorial Day weekend in May and pretty much winds up after Labor Day in September.
This season refers to the time when more and more people get behind the wheel and head out to places near and far. Lured by warm temps, blue skies and sometimes, dry roads, we head out like early nomads seeking recreational and vacation pursuits.
I used to enjoy being a member of the driving public. I've had my driver's license for over 50 years and only once was stopped and issued a verbal warning for speeding. I never owned my own car until I was married, and it wasn't exactly a showroom vehicle. But that's another story.
I was fortunate to have had people in my life who taught me how to drive a standard transmission. There have been three speeds, four-speeds and three on the column shifting vehicles in my driving repertoire. Driving a manual transmission is akin to knowing how to write and read in cursive. It's becoming a thing of the past.
It's a comfortable feeling knowing I can get behind the wheel of just about any vehicle and know how to put it into gear. However, my hat is off to those 18-wheeler drivers -- that's just out of my league.
Anyway, as far as driving today, it's not fun anymore. Not that driving is supposed to be fun. It's a serious responsibility to get behind the wheel. Unfortunately too many of us take it for granted as if it were some God-given right to drive.
Yes, we have to obey a lot of rules to drive, but that is for our safety and that of those around us. Yet I am appalled at how there are people in this country who show total disrespect for the laws and the men and women in uniform who enforce them.
Maybe you have seen some of those online videos of traffic stops where drivers refuse to obey the commands of the police who stopped them. Now that is dangerous for both the officers and the driving public. I imagine that is one of the most terrifying and dangerous parts of law enforcement's job today.
No, you can't drive with a cell phone in your hand. And there are laws against texting and driving that are being ignored. Speeding is not negotiable, although it appears arbitrary on some Pennsylvania highways I have traveled.
Do us all a favor this "Driving Season." Pay attention to the task at hand. Obey the laws.
Move over when you see a traffic stop and allow the officers to do their job safely. Watch out for construction workers, too, who are working on our roads.
And if you see me driving down the street and I don't wave, it's just because I'm trying my best to stay alive behind the wheel.
Heather Ziegler can be reached via email at hziegle@theintelligencer.net.