Stereotypes

I’ve never really put much thought into stereotypes. That is until one Sunday night probably 6 or 7 years ago. Back then I used to work the Sunday session around Cottesloe, mainly from the Obie (Ocean Beach Hotel). Now the routine was fairly simple. The session would wind down around 9pm at the Obie and the crowd would gather outside before moving on to Claremont and Club BayView a short trip of just $6. Liquor licenses on Sundays in Perth back then ran out at midnight so time was limited both for the punters wanting a skin full and the cabbies wanting to fatten the pocket. So once you’d dropped at ‘Club’ it was straight back to the Obie for hopefully the next car load.

What has that got to do with stereotypes you ask? Well 1 Sunday night I got stuck behind a slow driver. Nothing unusual about that I agree but the problem was that over 50% of the trip was on a tight single lane each way road with 2 roundabouts and several speed humps. In other words a road with absolutely nowhere to pass. This particular driver however must have bagged every stereotype ever thought up for slow and/or annoying drivers.

I was behind a Volvo Estate (station wagon), with country plates. Driven by a female driver (no flames please), wearing a hat with kids moving unrestrained around the back and she was driving at 30km/h basically half the legal speed limit. I mean imagine every joke you’ve ever heard about driving and I was looking at it.

Thankfully she turned left where I turned right and I never saw her again