Doing too many things at one time usually results in things being done poorly. Just look at anyone who tries to have a conversation while texting.
But when you're trying to combine driving a vehicle that weighs thousands of pounds and travels at high speeds with other things, the result can often be deadly.
Last week, it was reported that for the first time in the history of this province, distracted driving has caused more fatal collisions than drinking and driving. Of 173 recorded fatal collisions on Saskatchewan roads up to December 17, 57 were attributed to distracted driving, SGI reported. A total of 54 were caused by drinking and driving.
The drivers involved in these collisions were distracted by their phones, SGI said, even though using your hand-held cellphone while driving is illegal. They were also playing video games or eating. Sgt. Paul Dawson of the Saskatchewan RCMP was even quoted as saying he has seen someone eating a bowl of cereal on the way to work.
I have to admit, I have eaten while driving in my car - snacking on a bag of chips or a bagel while on the highway. But playing a video game, reading a book or eating something that required both hands be used are things that I've never considered doing while on the road, even when the highway is straight and flat.
Constantly needing to multitask has become a part of our culture. In our jobs, in our personal lives, we are being asked to do many things at once, because we have devices that can help us do that. We can talk on the phone, write an email, send a fax and a text, and Tweet about it all at the same time.
Even at home, unlike the days before all our new-fangled inventions, we can do a load of laundry, watch television, bake a cake and surf the Internet all at the same time. It doesn't take all day to do one thing.
As a result, our attention spans are shorter. We require constant stimulation. And we get distracted away from necessary tasks easily, which leads to rushing and trying to do too much at one time.
This has meant that focusing on one thing at a time can be difficult, even, apparently, if that one thing is directing a vehicle hurtling down the road.
Perhaps we should look at our time at the wheel as a break from all that over-stimulation. It's a calm time, when our focus has to be on one thing, and one thing only. The reality is, at least in Humboldt, not paying attention will result in some sort of collision. Driving defensively is a requirement to getting through each sojourn on the roads unscathed. Try reading a book while driving down a sidestreet and you may just be broadsided by someone who forgot to look for the stop sign.
Sure, by now we all thought that cars would just drive themselves. We wouldn't have to do anything but get in and tell it where to go. But while cars can now parallel park themselves, the technology isn't quite there yet to make them driverless. We have to accept that we will have to direct our vehicles manually for at least the next few years.
And that means leaving the cereal bowl at home.
