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"Jesus rides beside me."
- The Replacements, 'Can't Hardly Wait'

First of all, Can't Hardly Wait is a really good song. My favorite lyrics go like this; 'Jesus rides beside me/he never buys/any smokes..' Then right after that, there's this little snakebite guitar lick I wish like heck I could learn how to play. Perhaps in some other life.

Here in this life, things are pretty good. My post yesterday got me thinking a bit about religion. I'm not an overly religious person, but I do have my beliefs -- and my practices. For instance, I remember hearing once that when you're driving you should imagine Jesus is riding beside you. And what I took that to mean is that you should always drive as if Jesus is right there, watching you. That kind of creeped me out, though, so I put my own spin on it: my approach was, you (and by you I mean me) should drive as though Jesus's personal safety were resting on your (my) shoulders. So that's what I tried first. But then I noticed I was still driving a bit more aggressively than perhaps I should have been (this was four years ago, back when I was a lot younger). So THEN what I decided to do was this: I started pretending that Jesus was in the passenger seat holding an open can of paint. This approach has worked pretty well. It's definitely brought about results. I mean, I think part of it is I'm more mature as a person. But the thought of that paint splashing the interior of my car...well, it does give one pause. I have to say, it's made me a much better driver.

Don't get me wrong, though. There are still times when I'll look to my right and say, "Buckle up, Jesus. And watch that paint. We're about to attempt a fairly high-risk manuever here."

He's a passenger in my car, after all. I figure he has a right to know.