Clumps, Thumps, & Lollypops.

Some days traffic control is a breeze. The traffic flows steadily and smoothly, people are in a good mood, the day is sunny, and there is enough going on to keep you interested. Today was not one of those days. It is a long weekend in Taranaki and there are all sorts of events on, the biggest being WOMAD. We have X number of stabilizing sites to finish before the sealing crew hits them tomorrow. We were a truck short due to some doddery old dude putting it on it's side yesterday. For my sins I volunteered to man the lollypop & radio. The traffic heading south to New Plymouth was an eclectic stream of hippyish vans, old buses, sports cars, and flash sedans. The traffic heading north was the more usual dad, mum & kids, with holiday gear, cars towing boats, caravans, and pissed off business reps heading back to Auckland.
It was two woman gossiping that nearly killed me. You could see it coming. A car coming straight on, through the signs, driver on autopilot, yakking flat out. We had a roller and loader across the road, and several men marking out the road. No way can you let a car through. I dived forward and hung the lollypop in front of the oncoming windscreen. Realization dawned and the wheels locked up. The two cars following took evasive action, one skidding off the road and ended up where I had been standing.
I marched to the window and gave the white faced driver an earful. "You stupid woman! You could have killed my mates, it's a 30 k speed limit" etc.etc. A tirade of abuse also came from the cars behind. "I'm truly sorry.... I really am" . Flustered she stalled the car when she went through, to cop another earbashing from startled workmates who heard the skidding tires. It is a sound you don't want to hear on a worksite.
The rest of the day the traffic still seemed schitzoid, travelling too fast, too close, and in thirty car bunches. It was not a nice day on the road.