Highway Horrors

[gehayi]

Today I have to make a dry run to the Department of Corrections, where I have an interview on September 2nd. I am not looking forward to this interview, primarily because of the attitude of the people with whom I have to interview. Their automatic assumption--complete with driving directions--is that of course I will be driving on the interstate

Comments

[selenak]

Department of Corrections
This sounds very Orwellian. There really is such a thing?

Anyway, I'll cross my fingers for you.

Highways: sorry to be flippant about your terrors, but did you ever try the German Autobahn? Or any Italian road within a city? American highways never scared me; they appeared benevolent, slowly purring cats after the jungle of traffic in Rome and the everyday lightning speed of the Autobahn....

[gehayi]

Yes, there's a Department of Corrections. It's the state department governing the prison system.

And yes, I've heard about the Autobahn and driving in Italy. But I already know I'm never going to drive on those. Can't afford a trip over there, for one thing. I do, unfortunately, have to drive on an American highway today. And I already feel sick to my stomach.

I'm tempted to pass on the interview. I mean, it's not as if I'm going to get the job anyway. They will just give me The Look and that will be that. And they'll go through the panel interview for form's sake. And then they will go with some skinny broad straight out of high school with no experience because they will not have to pay her as much. Believe me, I know the score, and that's what has happened after every interview I've had for the past three years.

[st_salieri]

I actually found the Autobahn less threatening than American highways, even though the speeds are usually greater. For one thing, all the European cars are smaller. The thing that makes U.S. highways so terrifying for me are all the SUVs on the road with their blind spots and bad drivers. Also, I've found that American drivers tend to cover a wider range of speeds than the European highway drivers. I'm a really fast driver, others are slower. When you have traffic moving at hugely different speeds, with people weaving in and out, it can make for a disturbing experience.

Anyway, I'm sorry you have to deal with the sucky interview.