The One About When I Got A Ticket

SupahMommy has more than just one fun meme and since I was busy yesterday, (getting my hair done, tanning and working out -- how spoiled does that sound? --Hey I went to the grocery too!) I didn't get to play along with MEme Monday -- And, I want to!!! So here it is, better late than never! (Like everything else in my life!)

This week's theme is: Tell us about a time you got pulled over.
If there are too many times to chose just one,
slow the f down give us a list of your top 5.
If you've never been pulled over (seriously?!),tell us what you've done in your car that could get you pulled over!(didn't mean that to sound so racy!)If you're a goody two-shoes to the nth degree, tell us a funny story involving a car!

I got my first ticket EVER in the summer of 2008 (yes, my first ticket in over 20 years of driving... that's part of what made me so mad! I'm a good driver, dang you!) - and you would have thought the world came to an end! I was so irate I wanted to drive back to Alabama just to fight it... but I figured it was cheaper to just pay the dang thing.

Yes, I can be a bit of drama queen, but I still think it was justified in this situation.

We were on our way back from a Florida vacation and were in the very last county of Alabama before you hit the Tennessee line. Just a few more minutes and this would not have happened!

I was crusing along maybe 5 - 8 miles over the speed limit and was in the fast lane. I saw a police car in the median and so I pulled into the right lane -- TO GET OUT OF HIS WAY, MIND YOU, and he proceeds to pull me over!

WTH? I wasn't speeding! I started crying immediately which caused him to ask why... I guess he though my husband was harassing me. When he found out that wasn't the case, I think he thought my tears were funny!

Officer Carr - I'll never forget his name, not just because he made me mad, but because it's my mom's maiden name and I proceeded to tell him so while making small talk, which he didn't even care about; and, I'm convinced he had a quota to meet and I was his victim -- asked me why I was following the truck in front of me too close and why I didn't use my turn signal.

I was so flustered at first I didn't even remember a truck in front of me, but after he took me back to his police cruiser -- yes, I had to go sit in his car with him while he wrote my ticket up (which is all on an in-car computer now-a-days) -- it started coming back to me. I told him in our state we were to get out of the way of emergency vehicles. He said that was the law in Alabama too -- still no sympathy!

He said I was between 3 and 4 car lengths from the truck ahead of me and that he wouldn't pull me over for being 6 to 7 lengths, but 9 to 10 was optimum! Then he also gave me a warning for not using my turn signal.

Now, I probably wouldn't have been as mad if I had gotten the ticket for not using my turn signal. I know I didn't do that... but following to close??? Please! How can you prove that?

And, apparently I'm not alone in thinking this was silly. My son was pulled over for not stopping completely at a stop sign, (but he only received a warning) and the officer also asked for my ID and ran a check on me. He came back laughing and asked how I got a ticket for following to close! My husband said, 'Don't get her started!' He just replied, 'It happens to the best of us. I got a ticket a few months ago in another state!'

And that's how I ended up giving $160 to the state of Alabama!