Bulging veins popping out of your forehead, beads of anxiety-induced sweat dripping down your face as you sit in your car looking at the jackass in your rearview window who has been riding your tail like a dog in heat. You extend your arm out the window and start to raise that middle finger, falling into the trap of road rage.

Driving my mom to work throughout the break during early morning rush hour traffic on the way to King of Prussia wasn't exactly my idea of fun, and it certainly made me think twice about purchasing a car and cruising on the road after graduation. The idiots I saw driving made me want to turn in my license and sup up my bike in frustration.

The five-mile stretch of 422 is so slow moving around 8 a.m., I could have counted every strand of hair on my head by the time the line of cars would have moved even an inch. I saw one driver cut another off just to be 10 feet closer to his destination. The cut-off driver then proceeded to hug the first driver's heiney for the rest of the drive, almost causing an accident — and the trail of cars wasn't even moving at that point. I thought I could smell a brawl in the air, but luckily the claws were retracted and nothing happened.

My fears weren't quelled either when I was in northern New Jersey last week. I admit, those drivers don't mess around. They drive fast, they are aggressive and they know what lane is the right one, weaving in and out of confusing U-turns.

But why is everyone rushing around? Just because my car wasn't cruising along at ludicrous speed, we got honked at a million times. I'd rather be at my destination a few minutes late than coming home from the emergency room in a body cast because of crazy drivers.

According to a 1997 study done for the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 1,500 deaths in the United States that year were caused by aggressive driving. Another survey done by the Automobile Association in 1995 found about 90 percent of drivers have come in contact with road rage. Tailgating was the most popular type of road rage. Headlight flashing, obscene gestures, obstructing other vehicles and verbal abuse were also common. A small percentage of those surveyed said they were actually physically assaulted by other drivers.

A 1997 New York Times article by Matthew Wald reported there were about 28,000 deaths a year because of temper issues while driving.

In December, a Bowling Green resident was beaten by a wooden construction tool, suffering injuries, all because he had gotten into an argument with another person over poor driving.

According to the Associated Press, an 18-year-old was shot and killed in November after his car was involved in an accident when another driver pulled out from a parking space.

During the summer, an accident on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, which killed one woman, involved road rage when one driver ran her off the road because she was going too slow in a passing lane. Her car flipped a few times, and she died immediately.

Getting into your car is probably the most dangerous thing you do everyday without many people realizing it. But there are some things everyone can do to prevent road rage.

If someone is riding your tail, hogging the left lane or riding the shoulder of the road don't take it upon yourself to make a citizen's arrest. Try to avoid the culprit and let him pass. If the motorist is endangering others lives, write down the license plate number and report it to police.

After that, if you still seek revenge, you can always submit another driver to an embarrassing Web site about idiot motorists at www.tardsite.com and www.roadragers.com.

Be responsible for yourself and take a chill pill before getting in a row with anyone or causing an accident. If you find your temper rising and your offensive driving is causing problems, you need help (try www.shsu.edu/~counsel/roadrage.html).

Or, if all else fails, you could quietly quote a mantra to yourself . . . "Serenity now, serenity now, serenity now."