It’s Going To Be A Great Day!
People are always looking for omens, whether they be four-leaf clovers or Mayan doomsday prophecies. However, Long Islanders don’t need complicated procedures to determine what kind of day will be. I’ve found that the following three occurrences will signify that it’s going to be a good day.
• You encounter an obnoxious driver
You know what an obnoxious driver is. He, or she, is the driver who doesn’t think you’re going fast enough, even though you’re keeping up with traffic and your speedometer says you’re traveling at a reasonable speed. An obnoxious driver tailgates you for a few moments, as if his or her presence will motivate you to speed up and drive around 90 m.p.h. This is the driver who then switches lanes, blows past you as if you are the most insignificant creature on the planet and perhaps even makes a nasty gesture in your direction. Not satisfied with simply passing you, the obnoxious driver continues to zip in and out of lanes, zooming past cars until finally disappearing off into the distance.
Encountering such a driver may not seem to be a good omen, but then you realize, that if that driver is going so fast, it means that traffic is moving and you are not stuck in a traffic jam. And if you’re not in a traffic jam, it’s probably going to be a good day.
And, while driving safely and responsibly, if you catch up with that driver, despite his or her recklessness, it means it going to be a great day. This is especially true if the reason you catch up is because the maniac has been pulled over by a police officer.
• You have a full tank of gas.
As you begin your commute, if you glance down at the fuel gauge and see that it’s full, it’s going to be a good day. It may have hurt when you filled up yesterday, but now you have a full tank of gas and if you listen closely enough, you can actually hear your wallet breathe a sigh of relief.
There’s no greater feeling than driving past a gas station, and seeing all those poor souls, filling their tanks and emptying their wallets. After all, you’ve escaped it. You will not be stopping to be fleeced by oil companies. And, if you take a look at the gas prices and see that there has been an increase in prices since you filled up, it’s going to be a great day. If only those poor souls had the foresight to fill up when you did, they would have saved money and be joining you in the ride past the pumps. Instead, they’re filling up and you don’t have to. You feel like the smartest person on the planet, and, after all, you are.
Of course, the real pessimists will think that even though their gas tank is full, eventually it will be depleted and they will have to get some gas as well, But that won’t be for a few days, so there’s no need to worry about that now. Besides, gas prices will probably drop back to about two dollars per gallon by the time that day comes.
• There’s no line at the drive-through.
When you go past your favorite morning drive-through, whether it be McDonald’s, Starbucks, Dunking’ Donuts or anywhere else and there isn’t a tremendously long line, it’s gong to be a good day, The same goes for fans of 7-11, who pull into the parking lot and are able to get a parking spot right in front.
We’ve all been there. We really can’t afford to spend ten minutes getting a cup of coffee, tea, hot chocolate or whatever, but we really need it. Without that morning pick me up, the day starts off badly and drags on. So, we head to the drive-through, knowing that we really should get to work and begin the day, However, the line is small, and you get your cup of motivation. Isn’t it uncanny how the beverage is always made exactly as you ordered it on days that the wait is short.
And if there’s nobody on line at all, it’s going to be a great day.
Ron Scaglia is the Special Sections editor of Anton Newspapers.
