WOW
Twice a day I drive an hour to and from work. The commute is far from exciting, I often find myself half way to work without feeling fully conscious of having driven that distance already. About a third of my trip is on the local highway, both sides of the road bordered by trees which makes for the most scenic part of my drive. I try to at least enjoy that much of it and try to forget the 50+ stop lights along the rest of the route.
A few months ago now, I was driving along this stretch of highway, singing along to the radio as I always do and not really paying any attention to the cars around me. I pulled alongside a car to pass but noticed the car sped up instead of allowing me to pass. At the point this became noticeable and drew me out of my celebrity singing status, I looked over at the driver and he looked right at me, smiled and waved.
I was so caught off guard I didn’t know what to make of it. I sped up, pulled in front of him and resumed my place in line amongst all the other commuters. I turned the radio up a bit more and resumed my singing. It wasn’t but a mile or two later that this same car pulled into the passing lane, pulled up alongside me and kept pace with me. I was annoyed. I looked over and the driver said something I didn’t understand but looked kind of like “wow”. He smiled and waved.
I slowed down, making him pass me. It pissed me off. I can’t really give reason to it other than it was so incredibly out of the norm that I felt upset by the fact that I will ill-prepared for it. He pulled in front of me and then slowed down.
I must have flown past him going no less than 85, I didn’t care if I got pulled over, I figured I could say there was a creepy guy on the highway who was bothering me. (I’m sure that gets a girl out of ticket.) He didn’t try to keep up and at some point along the way he must have turned off.
I thought about it all day. I thought about it each time I got in my car for weeks afterwards. Did some guy try to actually hit on me on the road?!? And was I such a dork that I blew off the only man to hit on me in this decade? Or was this some psycho guy that does this to all women he sees on the highway? I had no answers and only a strange curiosity brewing in my gut that made me wish I had handled things differently that day. I can’t say how, I can’t even figure out now a logical solution that would have told me this guy’s intentions.
Today, as I’m driving that same stretch of road, I thought about that guy again. I haven’t thought about it in awhile, and I don’t drive the stretch at the same time anymore, but I wondered about it nonetheless. Today, however, for the first time, I wondered if it had happened on a Wednesday. I had never thought of it at the time and it’s far too long gone now for me to know if it was but it would be significant towards finding the answer.
Around here, we have a local radio station that in all their “cleverness” (read that Male dominated listenership) decided to create bumper stickers that say “W.O.W.” I suppose if you didn’t know any better you’d never think a thing of it, but if you’ve heard them talk just once, you’d know it stands for “Whip ‘Em Out Wednesday” the day when they think women should randomly flash other drivers just for kicks. Yes, I see. All this is the result of testosterone set loose in a small studio. And they pay these men? (Editor’s note: the men reading this are thinking “What a clever idea! Why didn’t I think of that sooner? I wonder if my radio station would start such a promotion….” The women are gasping, thinking surely I am mistaken. There’s no way men would be that obvious about wanting to see boobage… oh, but yes, they are, and no, I’m not kidding.)
These bumper stickers abound in my area. Why did it never occur to me that THIS is what this man might be suggesting?
Now, maybe he was and maybe he wasn’t. If he was, I certainly wasn’t going to oblige no matter what. He would have been disappointed with his request regardless. But I have to say that there was a piece of me that liked thinking that some strange man on the highway waved just cause he thought I was cute. And not cause he was testing out the wonders of W.O.W.
A few months ago now, I was driving along this stretch of highway, singing along to the radio as I always do and not really paying any attention to the cars around me. I pulled alongside a car to pass but noticed the car sped up instead of allowing me to pass. At the point this became noticeable and drew me out of my celebrity singing status, I looked over at the driver and he looked right at me, smiled and waved.
I was so caught off guard I didn’t know what to make of it. I sped up, pulled in front of him and resumed my place in line amongst all the other commuters. I turned the radio up a bit more and resumed my singing. It wasn’t but a mile or two later that this same car pulled into the passing lane, pulled up alongside me and kept pace with me. I was annoyed. I looked over and the driver said something I didn’t understand but looked kind of like “wow”. He smiled and waved.
I slowed down, making him pass me. It pissed me off. I can’t really give reason to it other than it was so incredibly out of the norm that I felt upset by the fact that I will ill-prepared for it. He pulled in front of me and then slowed down.
I must have flown past him going no less than 85, I didn’t care if I got pulled over, I figured I could say there was a creepy guy on the highway who was bothering me. (I’m sure that gets a girl out of ticket.) He didn’t try to keep up and at some point along the way he must have turned off.
I thought about it all day. I thought about it each time I got in my car for weeks afterwards. Did some guy try to actually hit on me on the road?!? And was I such a dork that I blew off the only man to hit on me in this decade? Or was this some psycho guy that does this to all women he sees on the highway? I had no answers and only a strange curiosity brewing in my gut that made me wish I had handled things differently that day. I can’t say how, I can’t even figure out now a logical solution that would have told me this guy’s intentions.
Today, as I’m driving that same stretch of road, I thought about that guy again. I haven’t thought about it in awhile, and I don’t drive the stretch at the same time anymore, but I wondered about it nonetheless. Today, however, for the first time, I wondered if it had happened on a Wednesday. I had never thought of it at the time and it’s far too long gone now for me to know if it was but it would be significant towards finding the answer.
Around here, we have a local radio station that in all their “cleverness” (read that Male dominated listenership) decided to create bumper stickers that say “W.O.W.” I suppose if you didn’t know any better you’d never think a thing of it, but if you’ve heard them talk just once, you’d know it stands for “Whip ‘Em Out Wednesday” the day when they think women should randomly flash other drivers just for kicks. Yes, I see. All this is the result of testosterone set loose in a small studio. And they pay these men? (Editor’s note: the men reading this are thinking “What a clever idea! Why didn’t I think of that sooner? I wonder if my radio station would start such a promotion….” The women are gasping, thinking surely I am mistaken. There’s no way men would be that obvious about wanting to see boobage… oh, but yes, they are, and no, I’m not kidding.)
These bumper stickers abound in my area. Why did it never occur to me that THIS is what this man might be suggesting?
Now, maybe he was and maybe he wasn’t. If he was, I certainly wasn’t going to oblige no matter what. He would have been disappointed with his request regardless. But I have to say that there was a piece of me that liked thinking that some strange man on the highway waved just cause he thought I was cute. And not cause he was testing out the wonders of W.O.W.
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