3 rants and a rave back to school style

I haven't done this in a while. I suppose its nicer to rave than to rant but I've got some bottled up rants ready to explode out of my head!

1. Drivers who speed through school zones at more than 2x the limit. Seriously? That 20 extra seconds it takes you to get through the school zone at the appropriate speed is worth a child's life? Don't tell me there wasn't anybody around. I was around and I had kids in my car.

2. School buses parked in the school pickup lane so that two directional traffic can only move in one direction at a time, thus making a 1 minute trip through the school parking lot a 5 minute trip because people (parents) don't know how to take turns and go every other car so that everybody can get where they need to go. Why are we sending our kids to school if we can't even take turns ourselves?

3. People who park inconsiderately because they are late and apparently it takes more time to park properly than it does to just swing into any old place on the black-top and put it in park. Dear lady who blocked my car in this morning so that I could not leave without hitting your car (and who's children also put "rude-door-dings" in the side of my car because you were taking up half of my parking space along with yours) It takes NO EXTRA TIME to pull your car in straight and allow people to move freely through the parking lot! In your defense, you were not the only one parked like a jackass this morning. About every third car in the lot was parked the same or worse than yours. Normally I arrive at school with my children 15-25 minutes early. This morning was an exception. I will be avoiding the school in the 8:00 hour at all costs in the future. You people are just too inconsiderate, and apparently selfish, to have it even cross your minds that your tardiness affects more people than just you.

...and finally for my rave, where I am compelled to say something nice after spewing all this hate.

RAVE: The many many many people who ARE kind and considerate. Each day when we arrive at school EARLY, the lot is busy, crowded even, but people take turns, wave at each other, smile, say good morning, cruise slowly through the school zone, and park nicely. They wait patiently as children cross the road, or parking lot.

end note: This really points to the two kinds of people in the world, doesn't it? There are those who plan well in advance and can take on any situation with calm and often a smile. They often times are so well situated that they can be helpful towards those who have not planned quite as well. Then there are those who are perpetually late, knee-jerking their way through life making their lack of planning everybody else's problem. I've been on both sides of that fence, I sure do like the plan-ahead side better. Its a happier way to live. I'm not saying I'm perfect, after-all, I wouldn't have discovered the late-arriver types in the parking lot today had we not been running behind our normal schedule. I'm just saying that the happier way to live is with a little planning ahead. Planning to be to school on time, planning to be to church on time, planning to prepare dinner for your family. Sometimes things happen and we must be able to be flexible and change our plans, but our homes are happier and our lives are easier when we make decisions about what we will do in advance.