A crucifix, dog tags and an air freshener shaped like a pine tree.

That's what I saw hanging from the rear-view mirror of the white pickup truck stopped at the red light next to me this morning at Gaylord Parkway and Dallas Parkway.

Just received an e-mail from a friend I hadn't heard from in a while.

Here's why: He was involved in a texting-related traffic accident.

 Oscar Martinez Is the guy on the Tollway in the BMW X3 with the Texas flag/SECEDE bumper sticker serious? Does he really want us to secede from the United States of America? Didn't we try that once already?

It's curious how the worst traffic accidents often occur on the prettiest days.

Lots of fog out there this morning. Be safe if you're heading north on Interstate 35 toward Denton. Visibility is very low on the major roads and city streets in and around Lewisville. My commute from White Rock wasn't affected much by the fog, especially through North Dallas on Interstate 635. However, the fog got thicker around Farmers Branch and Carrollton on Interstate 35.

For up-to-date traffic information, go here.

1. The good thing about rainy roads is that it actually makes people focus on driving and observe the speed limit ... most of the time.

2. In case you missed the morning headlines according to news radio, here they are: Rain, swine flu and Susan Boyle.

And how was your commute? 

My vehicle is among the more than 121,000 that pass through it every day.

It's a small stretch of State Highway 121 between Grapevine and Lewisville/Coppell. It doesn't seem like much, but it's a bane of frustration during Rush Hour.

Just drove into downtown Dallas from Frisco on the Tollway.

Temperatures were in the low 30s. Motorists were well-behaved and not going too fast or panicking on overpasses and bridges.

It rained quite heavily - first in Plano, then closer in, near the Galleria.

Two things: 1) Good luck to everyone on the road this morning. 2) Welcome to the first real work commute of 2009, everyone!

Not that long ago, I was a Nebraska resident working for a small newspaper called The North Platte Telegraph. Actually, maybe it was that long ago...2003-2004 to be exact. As you can imagine, we got our share of snow. However the few times that it did during that year, I was told that, "This is nothing..." Because the town was so small, my naivety driving in snow wasn't as much of a hazard as it could have been being that everything was just five minutes away with no need to brave the highway.

And so my normal M.O. of being a horrible bad weather driver never improved. Hence today's icy conditions have me retreating to my home...Is there a driving boot-camp for people like me?