The Devil's Highway

      I am convinced that SR 201 is haunted or evil or something like that. For 500 years I drove 60 miles to and from work (maybe more like 8 or 9 years), and nothing weird ever happened. The occasional car wreck, road construction, and other annoyances like that but nothing "odd". In the almost 2 years I have been driving 201 I have had too many unusual occurences. The very first that I can remember was I always saw the exact same car. It would be driving along 201 near me. What makes this weird was that I would see this car both on my way going and on my way back. Even when the times were different. Now I didn't see it every time, but at least half of my outings, and I am always out. I know it was the same car too because the license plate said "road runner" with some of the vowels missing. That lasted about 2 months and then, poof!, I have never seen the car again. Ever. Okay so maybe many of you will think that's not so weird. Just coincidental.
      Well let me go right into my next unusual circumstance. This is a first for me. One night as I was coming home from work late at night around 1130 I saw car lights coming towards me from the opposite direction. Now I just assumed that the car was on the other side of the road, but no. When it got very close in front of me I horrifyingly noticed that it was in my lane! Headed straight for me at freeway speeds. I swerved into the lane next to me (luckily there was no car there), and it sped on by me without slowing right up the road and into the night. ??? That gets your blood pumping.
      On another lone dark night coming home from work. Not a car on 201. There I am driving along and singing, and right there on the opposite side of the road for no apparent reason was a car completely consumed by large flames of fire. It was like a massive bonfire. Not one part of the car not in flame. And not a person  or a car to be seen anywhere. I really really hoped no one was in that car. It was just in the middle of the lane not even on the side of the road.
       After the last instances perhaps this next thing will seem trivial, but I think it makes a point all the same. I have never in my life with all my years of lots of driving gotten a flat tire. Where do you suppose my tire blew out one night late as I was driving along a dark lonely road after work???  That's right SR 201.

Sometimes I think I need a different shift. :)