TMQ Sign-off

Some words of wisdom from a pretty smart guy -

TMQ Season Sign-Off: Tuesday Morning Quarterback folds its tent and steals off into the desert till August, though will resurface briefly around the NFL draft. As usual, I recommend you employ the offseason to engage in spiritual growth. Take long walks. Perform volunteer work in your community. Exercise more and eat less. Attend worship services of any faith. Drink less coffee, more green tea. Appreciate the beauty of nature -- God did not make nature by accident. Read one of the great books you've always meant to read. Be with your family and friends. As Barbara Bush said to the graduating class of Wellesley College in 1990, "At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, not winning one more verdict or not closing one more deal. You will regret time not spent with a husband, a child, a friend or a parent."

Of newly released works, in political books, I recommend "The Party Faithful" by Amy Sullivan; in science, "Why Evolution Is True" by Jerry Coyne; in psychology, "Beyond Revenge" by Michael McCullough (explains why the desire for retribution is an evolutionary proclivity we must overcome); in general nonfiction, "Traffic" by Tom Vanderbilt (hilariously shows that traffic jams have plagued society at least since the days of the Caesars); in economics, "Good Capitalism Bad Capitalism" by William Baumol, Robert Litan and Carl Schramm; in history, "A Nation on Fire" by Clay Risen (about the murder of Martin Luther King Jr. -- the night before King died, he said, "Only when it's dark can you see the stars"); in self-published books, "The Losing Game" by T.E. Scott, which argues Wall Street is a giant hustle designed to separate investors from their money; in sports, "Positive Sports Parenting" by Jim Thompson, a book every youth-league and high-school coach and parent should read; in humor, "Our Dumb World" by the writers of The Onion; in fiction, "Bridge of Sighs" by Richard Russo and "Lark and Termite" by Jayne Anne Phillips.

Read, mediate, serve others: Do these things, and you will feel justified in racing back to the remote, the swimsuit calendars and the microbrews when the football artificial universe resumes anew in the autumn.

You may find Gregg Easterbrook's final TMQ column of the season here.

Driver's Ed from TMQ

Writer of the wonderful column "Tuesday Morning Quarterback" (TMQ), Gregg Easterbrook, has some excellent advice for young drivers and those responsible for them. I have never liked following or having people follow me in a car. You should get directions and meet at your destination, and not travel by caravan. You should always have a pen and paper in your car, but if you happen not to, just write a text message before leaving, so that a passenger may read the directions to the driver, or the driver can quickly consult them to refresh his or her memory. Here are his thoughts -

Driver's Ed Should Teach Kids Not to Drive in Caravans: People who, like me, live in the Washington, D.C., area were shocked in mid-June when a terrible car crash took the lives of two girls and two young women, all recent graduates of the same high school. People who live in New York state were shocked less than two weeks later when a disturbingly similar terrible car crash took the lives of five girls who were all recent graduates of the same high school. In both cases, the victims were on their way to graduation celebrations -- a beach week and a lakeside week. All the victims were beautiful teenagers or young women, and few events seem sadder than the death of beauty in youth because it is assumed -- whether truly or falsely -- that the world lies at the feet of the young and attractive. Alcohol was a factor in the first crash, an autopsy showing the driver legally intoxicated under Virginia's strict standard for those younger than 21; cell phone use while driving is suspected in the second. The tragedies did have one thing in common, however: In both cases, the crashed cars were traveling at highway speed as a caravan of carloads of friends headed to the same destination, and in both cases, it was the lead car that crashed.

AP Photo/Dan Elliott

Alcohol, drowsiness, cell phone use -- and caravan-driving -- are causes.

Here's a safety rule that ought to be taught in driver's ed: Do not travel in caravans! Caravan driving is more stressful than regular driving, especially for the lead driver, as she must look in her mirrors constantly to see whether the trailing car remains in view. Caravan driving tends to cause lead drivers to take intemperate risks to avoid getting blamed for causing the following car to become lost. And if those in the trailing car are using their phones to provide running commentary to the lead car, another layer of distraction is created. Police found that in the New York tragedy, the driver's cell phone received the text message "what are you doing?"about 30 seconds before the crash; the driver might have been attempting to text back when she lost control. On congested highways, it is nearly impossible for two cars to stay right together with the first driver leading the second. Use MapQuest, use GPS, use good old Rand McNally, agree to meet at a certain place and time -- but don't drive as a caravan! Distraction is a principal cause of crashes by young drivers, and few road situations distract a young driver more than attempting to lead a high-speed caravan.

Check It, Yo

I was reading TMQ (Gregg Easterbrook), and I was reminded of the important issue of tire pressure. Most drivers do not check this. It's dangerous and causes unnecessary, excess fuel consumption.

Read here on the Car Talk website about how to properly determine your car's recommended tire pressure. Of particular importance is maintaining proper pressure during seasonal changes -

"...if you last had your tire pressure checked in July, when it was 80 degrees outside, and it's now January — and the temperature is minus 20 — your tires may be underinflated by 10 pounds, which is dangerous."