Hi. I'm the driver in the car behind you.

We've been sitting here long enough to sort of become acquainted, so I feel like I can speak up.

You might be proud of yourself for not texting while driving. You might feel good about waiting until you're stopped at the stop sign to check the map or answer your kid's text.

But you're still behind the wheel of a car, on the road, and that means you're a driver. And right now, you're a distracted driver.

I know: A million thoughts are running through your head. You have a lot to do. If you could just cross one little thing off your list right now, while you're thinking of it, you'd be so efficient. It will just take a second.

I do it, too. I've been known to write stuff on my arm at stop signs, or ask my passenger to call my voice mail and leave me a message when an idea strikes while I'm driving. If you were behind me then, I apologize to you.

When one of us goes into the just-a-second fog of mini-tasking with one foot on the brakes, how can we bring each other back from distraction? How can I get your attention back on driving, so your vehicle is actually moving when it's your turn to go?

I once honked at a lady parked in front of me to let her know that the light had been green for a while, and she looked up from her lap and shook her fist at me. Yep, her actual fist. Honey, even if you are in the middle of a text conversation, you're not sitting at your kitchen table. We're sharing the road and, right now, you're hogging it. That's not just rude; it's dangerous.

Plus it's illegal: That Minnesota law that prohibits texting and web surfing while driving? It applies when you're sitting at a stoplight or stop sign, too. First fine is $50; after that, it jumps to $225. So clearly, we take this stuff seriously.

FYI, other drivers can tell when you're looking down at your lap. We don't think you're checking your seat belt.

So let's all stop mini-tasking at stop signs. Let's please pay attention to driving — even when our cars are not moving. Because we affect traffic every minute we're behind the wheel.

Let's just, you know, stop.

And then, let's go already.

Betsy Spethman lives in Dundas, Minn.