I was coming back from a fantastic couple nights on the coast playing with the construction boys and their heavy equipment. It was a sunny warm day and I had fun plans for the evening back home. I was singing loud to Natasha Bedingfield’s great anthem, “Single.” I don’t think I have ever returned from the beach without a traffic jam. What great time I was making. Along about Denton, the two-lane highway stretched out straight in front of me with only cornfields beside me and not a car in sight – until that State Trooper drove by.
I slowed and stopped singing. He passed me and made a u-turn. Don’t you hate that feeling when you see the lights turn on in the rear-view mirror? Maybe you’ve never had that experience. It sucks.
When the friendly trooper approached my window for my documents, he informed me that he had clocked me at 74 in a 55. I hadn’t seen a parked police vehicle and asked,
“Would you mind telling me how you determined my speed?”
“Radar,” he stated simply.
“I didn’t realize radar worked from an approaching vehicle,” I offered to explain my query.
“Technology’s improved,” he smiled.
“Damn.” I hoped he didn’t mind the honesty.
“The judge here is real fair. If you have a clean driving record, you’ll likely not get any points for this.”
“I get points for this?” I winced.
“Two. But if you have a clean record, the local judge usually knocks those off."
His half smile met my raised eyebrows.
“Well, you can take your chances,” and he explained my pay it or go to court options. I decided not to mention the camera ticket notice I had on my kitchen table.
Well I did take my chances and it didn’t pay off. But what a collection of elaborate excuses! I’ll share some of those with you tomorrow.
So on the way home from the beach, either hope for traffic or use your cruise control – especially on MD Rte 404. It’s way underrated for it’s speed limit, not at all like North Carolina.
1 comment:
It needed lubrication. Fortunately Jeff showed me how to service the equipment.
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