FamiLee Life

Driving Blind on Valentine's Day

It's Valentine's Day and it's an icey morning commute. Perhaps drivers are thinking about love or frantically worrying about what to do this evening for their sweethearts. All I know is that there are some bad drivers out there today. I was taking a slow commute to work and nearly got sideswiped by a SUV driver right by campus.

Here is what happened... I was in the left lane preparing to take a left turn when the driver in the center lane began to move into my lane. What she didn't realize and didn't see was me and my car because I was in her blind spot. Luckily, she noticed at the last second and veered back into her center lane. The kicker is the fact that she also is a faculty or staff person at the University. In fact, I am certain that she is affiliated with the U because she pulled into the university parking ramp right behind me.

Anyway, it got me thinking about how so many drivers have their side mirrors improperly positioned! Most people have their side mirrors set to close to them. For example, look at the this image below. People seem to feel more secure to have the side of their car as a reference when they look into the side mirror.

However, the recommended driver position is to move the mirror further out than you would imagine. Look at this image below.

The same applies to the right side mirror as well. Visit this link for a full explanation.

I had learned this little trick from a college friend who was a physicist and very precise in everything he does. At first, I was reluctant to believe him. Then, I gave it a try and immediately agreed with him. Later, I learned that it is recommended by AAA and other driving safety organizations but I suspect few people know about it. For some reason, there is a false belief that we need to see the side of the car from the side mirrors. However, this is not the "blind spot" when we are driving. The blind spot is actually the spot that is not noticable from the rearview mirror and when we turn our head to the left (or right). By adjusting the mirror properly, we can notice this blind spot.

Not to sound corny (though I will) and not to make too much of a stretch with this metaphor (though I will), but perhaps this is much like love. It may seem safe to always have yourself as the reference when in a relationship but sometimes you need to look beyond. You need to be more attuned to the real blind spots in a relationship in order to avoid a crash and burn. Otherwise, you will make the same mistake over and over again because your not focusing on the right things.

So, try it out and drive safely (and love successfully) on Valentine's Day.

Posted by richlee at February 14, 2006 09:24 AM