Most Bizarre Driving Laws

Bizarre Driving Laws (as shamelessly "lifted" from this article: Bizarre Driving Laws)

The Greek sage Aristotle once penned, “Even when the laws have been written down, they ought not always remain unchanged.” Not only is this wise advice, but it was also prophetic; especially when you focus on some of the mystifying driving laws that linger on the pages of state statutes.

In order to save money on having to crop dust their streets, officials in Chico, California, have made it illegal to plant rutabagas in roadways.



Officials in Glendale, California, no doubt, caved in to insurance lobbyists when they inexplicably decided to make it illegal to jump from a car at 65 mph.



Don’t expect to find any salt-rimmed curbs in Hermosa Beach, California. Officials there have made it illegal to spill your Margarita on any street.

Connecticut

No need to get your Lexus Sport Luxury Sedan painted blaze orange. Hunting from cars in Connecticut is illegal, even during deer season.

Georgia

Going on an intuitive hunch that teeter-totters and cars don’t mix, officials in Dublin, Georgia, have made it illegal to drive through playgrounds.

Illinois

Beware if you own a bicycle in Galesburg, Illinois. The police there have no tolerance for “fancy riding.”

Iowa

Throw it and they (police) will come. In Mount Vernon, Iowa, it is illegal to throw your Red Ryder onto the highway.

Kansas

In Derby, Kansas, it is considered a misdemeanor to screech your tires while driving. This abominable act can cost you 30 days in jail.


In Topeka, Kansas, it is unlawful to transport dead poultry along Kansas Avenue. Lesson: look elsewhere for a KFC.

Kentucky

Make sure your canine does not harbor a weird fetish for tailgate lights or trailer hitches while in Fort Thomas, Kentucky. You’ll be fined if your pet molests a vehicle.

Maine

Be careful about Jonesing for a Bavarian Cream while in South Berwick, Maine. You’ll be ticketed if you park in front of Dunkin Donuts.

Maryland

Keep in mind while traveling through Rockville, Maryland, that the streets there are rated G. If you possess a PG-17 vocabulary, take the bypass. Swearing from a vehicle in Rockville is considered a misdemeanor.

Minnesota

In Minnetonka, Minnesota if you drive a truck that leaves mud, dirt or sticky substances on any road you will be considered a public nuisance that is harming the peace, safety and general welfare of the town.

Missouri

If you are a horn-honking hooligan you better be carrying your vehicle’s bill of sale if you have the nerve to toot your horn while in University City, Missouri. Officials there have wisely made it illegal to honk the horn of someone else’s car.

Nevada

To prevent any literal interpretation of Reno’s No Standing signs, authorities there have made it illegal to place a bench or chair in the middle of the road.

New Jersey

Don’t be feeling all fuzzy-warm about New Jersey residents if you’re driving through the state with a “Honk if You Love Skippy the Kangaroo” bumper sticker soldered to your vehicle’s trunk. New Jersey residents are required by law to honk before passing.


Arbor Day requires careful planning in Blairstown, New Jersey, for local officials there have made it illegal to plant trees in the middle of the street.

New York

Be sure to enter your vehicle feeling sartorially content while in Sag Harbor, New York. Officials there have made it illegal to disrobe while in your car.

North Carolina

Officials in Dunn, North Carolina, apparently harbor no faith in the intuitive powers of common sense:

First, they have made it illegal to play in traffic. So if you’re a parent make sure your kids play Candyland on the floor of a living room rather than on the asphalt of a passing lane.

Second, it is illegal to drive through a cemetery if you’re not there to dig a grave or bury someone. So if you intend to visit the grave of a loved one bring really powerful binoculars.

And third, even if you are considerate enough to yell “On your left,” officials still deem it illegal to drive on sidewalks.

Ohio

In Canton, Ohio, people wearing roller skates cannot share the streets with cars. And yes, this applies even during the “couples only” skate.
Oregon
In Oregon you need to be not only alert for state troopers with speed guns, but also with stop watches. For you can be ticketed if you leave your car door open longer than is deemed necessary.


You will be slapped with a Class A traffic violation if you use your car on an Oregon highway to prove your physical endurance.



If you opt for driving on a sidewalk while in Oregon, be sure to not attract the wrath of the law by not yielding to pedestrians.

Rhode Island

In Scituate, Rhode Island, it is illegal to drive with beer in your vehicle even if it is unopened. So, in other words, if you’re a beer delivery driver you’re screwed.

South Carolina

There’s a good reason why automakers don’t manufacture models named the Dodge Dumpster or the Lexus Litterbin. For in Hilton Head, South Carolina, it is illegal to store trash in your vehicle due to rat problems.

West Virginia

Virginia may be for lovers, but West Virginia is for meat lovers. Officials in the Mountain State have deemed it perfectly legal for anyone to scavenge road kill.

Most Bizarre Driving Laws

Old Age is a Gift

As shamelessly "borrowed" from the blog, Amelia Rose Cottage (which states she herself does not know the source of this wonderful essay:

Old Age, I decided, is a gift.

I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be. Oh, not my body! I sometime despair over my body, the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt. And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror (who looks like my mother!), but I don't agonize over those things for long.

I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly. As I've aged, I've become more kind to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend.
I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.
I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.

Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and sleep until noon?
I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60&70's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set.

They, too, will get old.

I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important things.

Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face. So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.

As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself anymore. I've even earned the right to be wrong.

So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day. (If I feel like it)

My note: This is relevant for me now that I am turning 44 and looking back with amazement at all the emotional, physical, spiritual and--let's not forget--technological changes the world and I have been through. After all, I grew up without computers, when a phone call or a jukebox song was a dime, when Disco was king, when gossiping with your friends happened face to face, and when a notebook, pen, and a good book were the best entertainment for a writer like me. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, to bastardize Dickens. We also had the energy crisis, Watergate, bad hair, bell-bottoms, Queen and Twisted Sister. But you never had to answer a demanding cell phone at all hours, check emails, or go online to find your friends. I guess I've lived through a lot. It reminds me of my grandfather's stories of his childhood memories of horse-drawn wagons and farriers in downtown Albany, NY, to his present day existence with cars and microwaves and PDAs. From his gunnery seargent days in World War II Burma and Panama, to his days as a door-to-door salesman and, later, world traveller, he saw it all. And had some wonderful stories to show for it. I try to tell my stories to the young 'uns, who just roll their eyes and listen patiently. "Back in my day, we had stone soup for dinner and that's the way it was and we liked it..." Sigh. I wonder if my stepkids will some day be saying the same things?

Old Age is a Gift

Better red than dead?!?!?

Okay, this was not supposed to be one of those angry blogs, but I just have to share what happened to me today...

Gradually, as we live our busy lives, freedom is slipping away from us. I don't know if it is a precedent from the Patriot Act or from companies like Enron, but we are ceding our rights to big business, politicians, con artists and thieves. Case in point: Dish Network deducted $420 out of my debit account, and I don't have automatic billpay. When I asked them why, they said it was written in my contract. Nowhere in my contract does it say they can use my debit card number to pay a late fee, unless I sign up for autopay, which I did not. When I explained that this was illegal, Dish offered to deduct my current billing charges from the $420 they had already stolen, and then refund the rest back to my debit card number. They had the nerve to ask me for my debit card number in order to process the refund!!! I said, you should already have it, that is how you took the late fee. The rep made some fake parrot-like noises, processed the "refund," and told me it would take 7-10 business days to refund the money into my account!!!!!!!! When I asked for a confirmation number to set up a paper trail, he said--surprise, surprise--that he could not do that at this time.

This is even shadier than the AOL customer service scandal, or the fact that Sprint "fires" complaining customers. Needless to say, I am taking this to the Attorney General's office and canceling my subscription...

Better red than dead?!?!?