Blocked!

I was headed up to NJ today - figured I'd see the 'rents and help them out a little. I took Monday off - I'm going to go back via Delaware and buy myself a tax-free Mac Mini on the way down. I drove up the way I usually go, though - via PA. On I-78 near exit 35, I hit a mile-plus traffic jam. A number of drivers decided to use the shoulder of the road as a third lane. This tractor trailer driver decided to prevent them from doing that.

I was kind of glad - I think that using the shoulder as a third lane is dangerous, and it's also problematic because sometimes police/emergency vehicles use it to get to an accident, if that's what's causing the traffic jam. But once I got to exit 35, I wanted to get off and take the detour that Tom-Tom told me to take, but getting over was difficult even though I was in the right lane, thanks to the extra "lane" on the shoulder.

While I was stuck in traffic, there was a vehicle next to me in the left lane - a blue Chrysler Pacifica. The passenger seat was occupied by a large women who was yelling loudly and gesturing towards the truck and going "good job" and then towards the cars on the shoulder and yelling "f*** them". She passed me about 20 miles down the road, so I'm not sure how much time the detour saved, since she stayed on the road and obviously wasn't that far behind me.