2026, Automotive, Family, Uncategorized

Karma!

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One of my mother’s life lessons for me and both my sisters was “who said life was fair”?  This was in direct contrast to the lessons most of us absorbed from cartoons, television and movies; usually, the bad guys get their comeuppance in the end.  Considering how little comeuppance a lot of current bad guys are getting, I’m glad my mom taught me some balance to always expecting fair.

Yesterday I had to run an errand over to St. Paul.  On the way over, I had to go north on Highway 280 – a left exit off 94.  There was quite a bit of traffic, so the last 2 miles before the exit, I just hung out in the left lane.  Even though I was going about 5 miles over the speed limit, there was one person behind me who was really impatient and got pretty close.  I ignored them.

Then on the way home, I had to go south on 35W, another left exit.  Same scenario – about 5 miles over the speed limit and again, somebody on my butt.  But this one was really aggressive and even flashed their lights at me.  Good grief.  They did a quick rush into the lane to the right to get around me.  The car that was already in that lane actually put their brakes on.  The impatient car swerved back behind me; the car in the right lane sped up a bit.  The impatient car tried again to swerve over and around; again the right lane car put on their brakes.  There was some long laying on of the horn and more flashing lights.  When we got off at the 35W exit, I slowed down a bit so my right lane friend could get ahead of me.  As we got onto 35W, the impatient car finally was able to swing out and pass us both.  I was wondering if he would pull in front and then stomp on his brakes, but he just left us inn his dust.

I completely get that things like this can turn into road rage but as impatient guy raced off, I realized I had a big smile on my face, having seen some instant karma.  I’m sure we didn’t make him late – the whole thing only took about 2 minutes, but I’m hoping the exasperation and anger he felt was a bit of karma coming his way (yes, I did eventually see that it was a guy).  So at least for two minutes yesterday I got to see a little bit of fairness in the world!

Have you ever seen someone get their comeuppance?

27 thoughts on “Karma!”

  1. I don’t think you and your right lane friend made the aggressive driver frustrated and angry. I think people like that bring frustration and anger into everything they do, including driving. He no doubt sped off to be angry with someone else. His worldview is its own punishment and has repercussions that extend beyond the highway.

    I don’t think of “Who said life is fair?” as a life lesson. It’s more of an expression of bitterness. It doesn’t serve to help a child absorb and reconcile the uneven experience of being in society. A larger perspective is possible and more helpful.

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    1. I have to disagree about who said life is fair. My mother was not by any means a bitter person, and the “who said life was fair” was always applied in the context of my sister and I whining about something not being fair, as kids do. And I think it’s actually served me well to understand that there are things in life that just aren’t fair and to keep my expectations grounded.

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      1. It’s a common response and doesn’t make your mother a bitter person. My point is that it’s a conclusion with no path forward. If the world isn’t going to be fair should you just give up? Not very helpful or useful to children.

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  3. My wife and I took a driving class for older drivers to help lower our insurance rate by 15%. The instructor, a retired highway patrol officer, suggested for those aggressive ‘on your butt’ drivers to turn your flashers on. I’ve done it several times. Lo and behold the pushy driver does pull back. Just FYI. I hate drivers too close to me. I think smiling and waving when they pass is the best response.

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  4. I don’t really have any clear memories of anyone getting their comeuppance. There is one person who really deserves it, as they say, “big time!”

    I hope Jacque is having fun in Ireland. I wonder if she took part in any demonstrations there. What a lot of fun that would be!

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    2. I can think of one person, who if they haven’t exactly had a comeuppance has certainly lost a lot in personal agency and dignity, with no opportunity to make amends. I know many will disagree, but I find it hard to watch.

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  5. Those tailgaters are really stressful. They must be angry people. It happens to me a lot. I guess I drive too slowly, but like VS, I usually go 5-10 mph over the speed limit, so it seems to me that I’m going too fast. I really dislike freeway driving, especially in the metro area. I think it takes years off your life!

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  6. Interesting that I can’t think of an instance of this. Will keep thinking.

    I think Life is “unfair” is a life lesson, but for adults more than kids, though you can mention it when you’re trying to explain to the how the world “works” (or doesn’t).

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    1. I think the message is that life won’t always seem fair and you can’t control that. What you can control is your own approach to fairness and that will make the world a little more fair.

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  7. OK, thought of a case where a person was ultimately asked to leave an organization if she couldn’t change her bad behavior. She didn’t, so she was kicked out. Doesn’t feel satisfying, though, because there is mental illness involved – it’s just very sad.

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  9. There have been several occasions when fellow flooring installers refused my admonition that what they were doing was NOT going to work and I was correct.
    That’s about as close to comeuppance as I’ve experienced and it was not satisfying.
    Whatever comeuppances come to 47 will be very satisfying.

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