Neila Wiles Pippins
Russellville
Dear Editor:
I often wondered who in the world came up with the idea of putting rumble strips on the highways. I have always found them to be annoying, and that grating sound especially loud and irritating, thinking them a waste of money. At least up until last weekend.
On Friday, my daughter and I drove to Cedar Falls, Iowa, to watch my granddaughter and the Camdenton High School Marching band compete in a regional competition. We had planned to drive back Saturday after it was over, but didn't realize it was going to be 11:30 p.m. before we were able to head home. Plus, it was raining a good part of the way and made for slow going.
I did pretty well until we passed through Kirksville and headed toward Columbia. We had to stop for gas, drinks, and just to walk around for a minute to try to stay awake. I had been up since 5 a.m. and it was around 3 a.m. when we left Kirksville. My eyes were starting to get really heavy, and the farther I went, the harder it was to stay awake. I have no idea how many times my tires hit a rumble strip and that loud, irritating sound jerked me awake and kept me in my lane, but it was a lot. Thank goodness there was almost no traffic, and we finally made it to Columbia. We stopped once more to walk around and wake up, then continued on to Russellville, pulling in the driveway about 5:15. I have never been more tired. If we go again, I will definitely get a motel room instead of driving all night.
I thank God for keeping us safe and getting us home, but now I also thank whoever came up with the idea of rumble strips. I will never again complain when my tire accidentally touches one, and I hear that irritating sound. Now it almost sounds like music.
By the way, Camdenton placed first in their class, got an award for outstanding general effect and placed third overall!