the golden ticket

so its been awhile. i realize that. but of course, there comes a day when you just need to vent about something.

summer is going just fine. i'm finding myself picking up more and more hours at work as time goes on, yet i still don't seem to be making as much as i did last summer after working for 7 weeks at camp. but it is a lot less stressful.

but my minimal hours are not what compel me to my forsaken blog-o-sphere.

i received my first golden ticket last night. no, its not the willy wonka magic chocolate factory kind of ticket. its the kind of ticket involving flashing blue lights and pulling your vehicle off to the shoulder of the road.

i naively thought the day would never come. over four years and i had a perfect driving record and virtually no run-ins with the law (except for my parking sin). i had always imagined myself as either passing out at the wheel or balling my eyes out at the sight of those blazing blues. i'm surprised at how well composed i actually was.

it was a little past 11 pm and i was driving back from jonathan's. i was making good use of my stick shift, coasting down hills and trying to conserve as much gas as possible. i was averaging something like 32 miles per gallon as i passed by publix, then the library, coasting along at a speed that i believed followed the 'ole 55 mph speed limit that stretched for 8 miles or so into the little downtown area.

well, right about then, jonathan and i were discussing how the speed limit dropped somewhere around there...but i had seen no 45 speed limit sign. and then, irony jumped out to bite me in the bumper.

it was just a shadow. no headlights were on and he was lying in wait. but i saw the shadow pull out behind me...and the outline of lights on top of it. i knew he was out to get me. then the shadow and blackness around me flickered blue...oh crap.

i quickly hoped he'd pull past me, but he slowed as i slowed. and there i was, pulled off onto the shoulder of the road, amazed that i had even known what to do in the situation.

after a minute or two, the officer came strolling up to the car.

"ma'am, do you know you were going 62 in a 45 zone?"

humorously, he asked me if i had any weapons in my car. i guess i do look a little dangerous.

so, i was going 17 over, unknowingly. i was extremely polite...but of course it didn't pay off. it doesn't matter that i have a perfect driving record, that i didn't yell at him for shining his flashlight directly in my eyes the entire time he was at the window, that i had a perfect driving record. i'm telling you, i don't get magic carpet rides. the minimal hours i'm getting is now going towards paying off a $100 plus dollar ticket.

he took about 10 minutes to process me. and get this...i didn't even cry. i'm pretty proud of that. until about 20 seconds after i pulled back onto the road and becca somehow felt the urge to call me.