I attended a driving training class for the newspaper's employees. It was like a refresher course on what drivers need to be aware of, from making sure our vehicles are in working order, being cautious in all types of weather and road conditions. Our class instructor said that drivers should be totally focused on driving safely.

Did you know that we always have a passenger in the car with us? Apparently, there's this guy named Distraction that gets in with us every single day. And he's not a very nice guy. He was the star in a video we watched.It follows two people who allow Distraction to ride with them. He encourages cell phone use, drinking and eating, doing make-up, thinking about problems at work, home and school, trying to read directions ... all of which leads to a fatal collision.So this morning, I decided to kick Distraction out of the car before I drove to work. That lasted a total of two seconds.Backing out of the driveway, I took my eyes off the rear view mirror so I could find the buttons to roll the windows down because there was so much dew on them I couldn't see out the side windows. I took a tissue on the passenger seat and stuffed it in my purse on the floor. I flipped up the console to get my sunglasses out."Whoa! So much for focus. I'm going to have to do better than that on the real road."Less than half a mile from home, a little car almost drives right out in front of me from a side road and stops halfway in my lane. Good thing I had kicked Distraction out.But evidently Distraction is a pretty slick dude. Without even being aware of it, he was sitting next to me. How do I know? Because I found out that I cannot stay focused on driving.Two miles from home. "Dang! I forgot to take sausage out of the freezer for dinner tonight. Now I'll have to microwave it and I hate that."Three miles from home, coming up on a stop light there's a car in front of me with New Jersey license plates. "I wonder what he's doing here so early in the morning? Is he a new resident that didn't get new PA license plates yet? Is he just visiting? He can't be a commuter because he's heading in the wrong direction. Hey, you jerk! If you were going to make a turn at the light, you should have had your turn-off signal on. Geesch. Did you get your license at a New Jersey Wal-Mart?"Focus.My eyes begin to wander. "I can't believe how the leaves are turning already. Where did summer go? I guess I'll have to get my fall decorations out this weekend. Yeah. Like I don't have anything else to do" mentally ticking off cleaning, covering Ross Twp. Day on Saturday, remembering that Harry found this cute little chapel that only has Sunday morning worship services during the summer months and this is the last Sunday and if we want to go, it has to be this Sunday ..."Oops. Focus Linda Focus.""Hmmm. Must be garbage pick-up day. That looks like an awfully nice sofa and chair to throw out. Maybe somebody will come along and pick it up to re-use. Then again, maybe that's not such a good idea. What if their dog peed on it or maybe somebody had lice. Yeah. It better just go in the garbage. Bet they got new furniture. That's exciting. I love getting new furniture. Now don't even think about it, Linda. You don't need anything right now. Darn you, Distraction! Get out of my car!"Focus. Focus."There's a bathroom vanity counter top. They must have got a new one. I wonder if they remodeled the whole bathroom or just got a new vanity top? Boy. That's going to be our next remodeling job. Our old bathroom vanity door won't stay closed anymore and the sink looks like crap. I wonder how expensive a granite remnant would be? It's not a big countertop ... Stop it! Focus!""Oooh Oooh! I love this song! (Belting out really loud) 'And it's run for the roses, As fast as you can, Your fate is delivered, Your moment's at hand, It's the chance of a lifetime, In a lifetime of chance, And it's high time you joined in the dance ...' Gosh! I sound really good. I wonder if I could have had a singing career? Nah. I only sound good in the car and the shower. You can't do public performances in a car or shower. But just one really big hit like Diane and I talked about that day we were doing the dishes at Mom's. If we came up with just one song like 'You Light Up My Life' or 'It's Raining Men', a one-hit wonder that earns a couple million dollars. That would be a million for Diane and a million for me, just enough to never have to worry about retirement. We'd be a great novelty act. These two big plus-size gals in really outlandish costumes and we could call ourselves ...'The Big Mamas.' Watch out, you stupid squirrel!!! You almost got squashed! Are you nuts? Ha ha ha ha. Nuts. Squirrel. Get it? Stop it! Focus on driving, Girl!"As I pulled into my parking space at work, I realized I flunked that driving test. In the 22 minutes it took me to drive to work, I probably spent 20 minutes thinking about everything but driving.In the video, Distraction told us that it's not a matter of "if" we have an accident. When we allow distractions while driving, we increase our odds of having an accident.Scary stuff, huh? Try it. See how far you can go before Distraction is sitting next to you in the passenger seat.