Fear

I am here to report - we had an excellent day yesterday.......... and though I was in the car for .......... EVER......... it didn't feel so bad as we were popping in to shops here and down the road .. and then around and back the road........ and more stops....... so it didn't feel like I was trapped in 4 walled box with no where to go............. 

However I did have to drive myself over to W's and back again......... which under normal circumstances is no big deal.  However summer in the city is a BIG deal.  It is when the powers who be decide to rip up roads - put detours in detours - and do their up most best to get everyone lost - natives and tourists a like.

and yes I have a GPS - but it knows nothing about detours inside of detours..... hell it doesn't even understand detours !!

Getting to W's was no big deal...... despite all the detours.  

Coming home from W's was another thing all togther.

When I left W's I had completely and totally forgotten I couldn't get on the bridge from the main street.......... my GPS didn't know squat about the round a bout way the detours sent me to get to the bridge....... and it was blowing a gasket - telling me to make legal u-turns every 2 minutes.

Once I navigated my way off the bridge I remembered I had to go straight - take side streets - because the highways are torn up - or been turned into parking lots because of other torn up roads.

My GPS was keeping up and agreeing with me..........until I got to the first corner where the GPS told me to turn right.  I thought - but what do I know - I should have gone straight.  BUT being the good obedient - follow the rules - sort of gal - I turned right.  When I got a minute to take my eyes off the traffic and look at the picture on the GPS I realized - for some stupid reason - the thing wanted me to go downtown - to turn around and come back.  Downtown is a mess - NO ONE goes downtown these days if they can avoid it.  So I figured - being the bright independent gal I am - I would do one of those legal u-turns - go back to the corner I was at when it told me to turn right and continue on my way home.

And I did - I think - get back to that original corner - but by that point I was all turned around and didn't know North from South - or up from down.  The GPS was telling me to make a legal u-turn...... the light was green - there were cars behind me - so I just continued on through the intersection thinking the damn GPS would catch up to me eventually and find/plot a new route home.

I didn't have a clue where I was ....... not a clue.  I guessed I was in one section of town and kept looking for something I might recognize - without any success.  I did however finally remember what street I SHOULD be on......... big help that was!!!  I didn't know if that damn street was to the left of me or to the right of me ......... so I just kept driving......straight.

I knew I was heading in a westerly direction - and my lil house is west.  

And then the rain started pelting down.

And it got dark.

And I could feel the childhood fears of being lost in the dark nibbling at the edges of my brain.  I took one quick look at the GPS and prayed for it to find me and get me OUT of the mess I seemed to be in.  At that moment the dear GPS caught up with me - figured out where I was and told me to turn left.  I did it with a sigh of relief.......... Finally 'someone' was taking charge.

I turned left and then right and then left again........ and suddenly I was in a deserted part of town with construction and run down / falling down buildings and not another car anywhere in sight. 

The GPS patiently told me to turn right and then left again...... and then go straight..... and then finally I spotted the street I should have been on all along.  

EXCEPT 

the damn GPS didn't tell me to turn left.  I said screw it and turned left on to the street and heading west once again.

I knew where I was - the GPS didn't cause it kept telling me to make a legal u-turn again.  If I could have - at that point - I would have shut the damn thing off......... but I needed all my attention on the road so that I didn't miss my next turn........ 

The drive from W's normally takes me 30 minute........... last night it took me 57 minutes.
57 minutes of that lil girl's voice asking "are we lost"???!! 

I was never so glad to pull into my parking lot - home at last !