First off, some links, in case you missed last week's column (which turned into a photo gallery) on how drivers would like to modify freeway signs, and this week's column, which is about LED no-turn signs and license plates.

We now turn to Roadguy's personal vehicle and the fact that he felt as though his right foot was losing its, well, footing during yesterday's snow event. Man, I never wear these shoes, and they're weird for driving, I thought. Then I pulled out the floor mat and discoverd the real reason my heel was sliding around:

A mound of ice, adhered to the carpet, surrounded uselessly by sand I'd tracked in.

With my short commute, my car never fully heats up, at least not enough to melt away the mini-glacier that had built up over a couple of days. In fact, the freeze-thaw situation probably enhanced the slickness. The floor mat was sentenced to spend the night in a laundry tub and, while the thing was still pretty grubby this morning, my gas-pedal traction was greatly improved. As in Toyota's global crisis, I can't actually blame the floor mat, either.