Met another friend for coffee and a three mile beach walk yesterday afternoon - have not gone to "my" beach for a walk/run since Sandy hit and my first visit a few weeks ago had me departing quickly from the shock of the destruction and damage that remains. Roads are still a mess here with ice, slush, water and salt from the storm so it was definitely a "truck day." The brakes still need work now that I have had some quality bonding time with the "diesel girl." In addition to spongy brakes I now have a headlamp out so she definitely is demanding more attention from me. My friend departed first and as I was driving through town, the main road T-bones into the beach strip where I was turning. At the stop sign was a rather dirty, black Prius driven by someone who gave me the "Oh Gawd, look at you and your big, nasty, dirty, diesel truck" stink eye of disapproval look. Wait, what?! I gave the driver a big ****-eating grin/smile as I drove by since having had two "poison coffees"in one day and being at the beach was huge for me. Being pleasant is the best way to handle disapproval from others. (My poison coffee and I ask for it that way at one particular Dunkin Donuts that knows me is a large, hot, triple/extra cream and 4-6 Equals depending on my mood - yes, I really drink it like that and am still alive and kicking with low good /bad cholesterol levels.) But moi? Getting the frown and stink eye? From a Prius driver?! If the driver of that particular Prius only knew my other "baby" was snoozing happily in the garage and how much of that "Prius Kool Aid" I really swigged... Also have a bumper magnet on the truck that says "Sure I can drive a stick" with a picture of a broom under it and I get a lot of laughs about it. You can't get any "greener" than a stick! Might need a PC sticker for the truck. At least folks "know" me here....
So hoping today the roads are clear since I am back to work tomorrow and driving/parking the Prius makes my life that much easier....
Unless brooms bring psychic powers, you may have misread the look and the mind of the dirty black Prius occupants. Perhaps what you perceived as a "stink eye of disapproval," was actually their regret that they took the, previously clean, Prius, instead of their diesel truck. After all, black is such a difficult color to keep clean and the truck was already dirty. The good news is that they may have perceived your "****-eating grin" as a warm greeting from a stranger, prevailing amid the destruction of a natural calamity. I frequently find it easier to judge the actions of others, sometimes unfairly, rather than assuming responsibility for my own. Regardless of the source of fault, we must each strive to be part of the solution.
The look in my direction was priceless and definitely annoyed and they did not even get to the bad part of the beach road. I may have read into it too much but I prefer to smile anyway rather than scowl or frown or worse. Life is too short to sweat the small stuff. Family had a black car years ago. Sleek and lovely when she was clean, a nightmare when she was dirty - dust seemed to find her. I do laugh at the statement "clean diesel." Kind of an oxymoron IMHO even though technology is doing great things each and every day.
There might be a market for those bumper stickers 'my other car is a Prius' and if not just sneakily stick leftovers on land barges around town
