Ever been a jerk?

I have to admit, I'm a "grumpy" driver *sometimes*. I don't road rage on people or anything but I get easily annoyed by the little, stupid things (IMO) that other drivers do.... I don't very often cut people some slack. And I really should. I'm going to try.

Although I'm polite enough to let people in when I see they're hung up etc, I'm also the first to curse a blue streak (or an age-appropriate version of one when my kids are with me) over another driver's perceived infraction against me..... great example I'm setting, I know - my kid's think "jerk" is just the common term for other vehicles on the road....

But today I was a jerk - unintentionally albeit, but still. I need to remember this morning the next time I think someone is being deliberately asinine.... sometimes people just have an "oops" moment....I'm going to try really hard.

I'm driving a rental until I get my van back today. I made a stop on my way into the office this morning and as I was pulling back out onto the road I was still trying to do up my seatbelt..... my hand pressed the wrong way on the obviously-too-sensitive steering wheel and I let out a long loud blast of the horn by accident.

At the exact moment that I was crossing the path of a car who'd just quickly pulled up to the stop-sign at a cross-road waiting to pull on after I passed. Ooops.

I'm sure he must've thought I was honking at him.

If it were me I would have thought the car was honking at me.... in a paranoid "omg-what-the-hell-are-you-doing-pulling-out-past-the-stop-sign-you-looked-like-you-were-going-to-swerve-out-in-front-of-me-and-cause-an-accident" type of honk.

I'd have sworn at the honker and been annoyed with them for the remainder of the drive. Probably shot them a dirty look when we met up at the next stop light or in passing.
Never once considering that they may not have meant to do that, kwim?

He did neither.

Guess I'm lucky not everyone is as much of a jerk as me ;)