I don’t take the expressway. I don’t mind going slow. I don’t care if it takes me twice as long to get to my destination. I appreciate courtesy. It’s so simple to just use your turn signal when you intend to change lanes. It shows intention. It creates safety. It is simple accessible information. Almost no one does it.

So I take streets.

I like the scenic route. I will choose Ashland over Western. I take the boulevards when I can. However, there is something that I’ve noticed about myself that I’d like to change – I seldom switch lanes.

There is something comforting in staying on a straight path. Though that is also a myth, as meandering around potholes is a necessity in Chicago. However, there is now that utility truck in front of me. Hmmm. I cannot see around it. I cannot see over it. And yet somehow I choose to follow it. Why?

I can move over to the next lane, certainly drive faster than its ambling speed, avoid the diesel fuel, and or garbage smell… but I stay in my lane until the truck turns out of my path. Why?

It makes me late sometimes. Once, for an appointment with a friend who when I told her that I was late because I kept ended up behind “the truck” she subtly (yet sarcastically) replied, “yeah, you can’t switch lanes because you are behind that truck.” It struck. Yes, why can I not switch lanes? Why?

The comfort level of not moving more than necessary is the antithesis of growth. It’s not easy, sometimes, to move. But if you can see around and ahead better… just switch lanes, already. Use your signal. Go.