Hi Candlemaker
I carefully read your story, here is my review. May I congratulate you on your nine years with WDC.
Please remember, I'm a writer just like you and these are only my impressions. My ultimate goal is to be helpful and supportive. Thanks for sharing your work.

OVERALL SENSE: You've learned your lesson. My motto too is not to go to the store hungry. I used to frown on the guys that were always impatient. Sorry! I know sometimes a person is in a hurry and has to be at a certain place at a certain time. This is when everybody gets in your way and makes you late. It's human nature to yell at somebody if they're doing something stupid as the woman in the parking lot. Just walk a little bit further lady!
Well, I'm thankful I don't live in a big town with traffic jams as the twin cities in Minnesota. I'm sixty-five miles away and live in a much smaller town. There isn't too many problems that I can't adjust to. But, of course, as there are in every city, you'll have the little old ladies that drive slow, use precious time waiting for a parking place when there is one nearby and butt in line when they don't care to wait in a long line. What are you going to do? Nothing, just smile. Let somebody else yell at him.
I like how you wrote this story. I can relate to it in oh so many ways. I think that's why it makes the story so good. I was interested from beginning to end. Good job.

         TITLE: "The Borderline Driver" is the title to this story and it fits.

         STYLE/VOICE: The style is personal and funny in many places. The voice stays strong throughout as you explain what happened to you in your personal life.

         SCENE/SETTING: The scene and setting takes place at first in the parking lot of a supermarket. The author is waiting impatiently for another driver as she waits patiently for a shopper who is putting her groceries in the car and pushes her shopping cart back to the return cage.

         CHARACTERS: The author is telling his personal story of what happened to him, the obstacles that are thrown in his way when he's in a hurry.

GRAMMAR/SPELLING: I found one error that I would like to bring to your attention.
The cashier turnd on her blinking light-- The word turned is missing the letter "e"

AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT: NONE

FAVORITE LINE(S): I do have some favorite lines that I would like to highlight. I'll first quote you and then I'll comment on why I liked them and how they added to the story.

          QUOTE HERE: There was a car in front of me in the parking lane. She was waiting, and WAITING for another shopper to unload her groceries, put her cart in the return cage
My face was red with fury! I was muttering all kinds of curses upon her house! How could anyone be so STUPID? I mean, there was another parking slot about sixty yards further down. She saved what, maybe twenty-two seconds of walking, while tying ME up for three and a half minutes!

          My Comment: I know this feeling so well and I'm sure other reader who reads this know and can relate too. Why these ladies do this is beyond me? They have the patience of a saint and we just have one thing in mind. We need to get into that store, shop and get back out as quick as we can. I always have a whole list of what needs to be done in a day so I don’t have to go to town so often so I’m usually in a hurry as you are.

          QUOTE HERE: It’s the same all over town. Some poor soul is doing thirty seven miles an hour in a 45 speed zone. Or maybe he’s going down the exit ramp, and he STOPS before merging onto the freeway, blissfully unaware of the quarter-mile merge lane!

          My Comment: There are some drivers that just don't know any better. They think they're doing the right thing as the drivers behind them think they're crazy. I love all these points you have pointed out. They're funny now but not so much when you are in these kinds of situations.

JUST MY PERSONAL OPINION: This is a good story that I good relate to. Thank you, Bob, for taking me down memory lane on all the bad drivers that think they are careful drivers. I'll be catching up with you later at Winnie's Comma Sense class for the next six weeks. Thanks for sharing this item! I only review things that I enjoy reading and I truly did enjoy this piece.




Take care now, keep on writing, I’ll keep on reading,
Jeannie