Kristin WolgemuthDriving Home
July 26th 2009 19:06
I was on my way home from work, and I passed a little shop called “Abundant Treasures.” I wondered what was in that shop. Some kind of gift shop filled with cards and trinkets and teddy bears? Or maybe a thrift store, smelling dank and dusty with lots of stuff on the cheap. Whatever it was, I didn’t stop to look. I wondered, but I didn’t pull the car over to go in and take a peek. I was too tired for diversions, so I just kept driving.
The traffic was slow. Cars lined up for what seemed to be miles in front of me. I had the air conditioning on in an effort to escape the hot, humid weather. I passed a law firm, an insurance agency, and the parole office. What a line-up! It’s too bad we need any of those places.
A couple of kids ran across the street in the crosswalk; all cars came to a screeching halt, as is the law. The kids looked like they had just come from the pool: their hair was wet and matted to their heads, and they each had a bag of belongings. I started thinking about how nice it would be to go to the pool. I haven’t been in years, and I don’t even own a bathing suit anymore. I kept driving.
Finally I got to the on- ramp and merged onto the highway. Again there was a lot of traffic. I spotted a broken down car along side of the road, a white t-shirt hanging from the window to indicate its dilapidated status. I felt bad for the owner of that car. What a horrible place to have it quit on you. I wondered if he walked to the next exit to get help, or if he had a cell phone to call someone to come find him on the highway, picking him up right there next to his pile of junk.
I started driving faster, wanting to get home as quickly as possible. I stepped on the gas and soon had to step on the brake. Pokey cars were blocking both lanes of traffic; I couldn’t get past them. How frustrating! Finally the slow car in the left lane merged to the right, giving me the opening I needed to be on my way. Well, I was on my way the whole time, but only frustrated part of the time. Now I had some relief!
The sky was cloudy and it started to rain. The strange thing was I was right on the edge of the storm cloud, so it would pour, then sprinkle, then stop, then pour again, all within a few seconds. I felt like I was in the Twilight Zone, or maybe just like I was driving through mountains. But the stretch ahead of me was straight- no mountains to block rain clouds. The last time I experienced such a thing was when I was a kid, and we were driving through the hills to get from Pennsylvania to New York state. I found myself in wonder at the weather, marveling at how quickly it changed.
Finally I was about to get back off the highway. I slowed down and merged right. I was so glad to be almost home that I didn’t even get frustrated at the tractor trailer blocking both lanes at the end of the ramp. I just waited patiently for my turn to get on the next road. I made a right onto it, and now I was in the home stretch.
After about two miles, I turned right into my driveway and into the carport. I put the car in park: lights off, iPod off and unplugged, ignition off. Keys in hand, I grabbed my purse and workbag and went into the house. Ahh…. home at last. I turned on the central air and then went to the bedroom, flopping down on the bed and enjoying every second of comfort and relaxation.
The traffic was slow. Cars lined up for what seemed to be miles in front of me. I had the air conditioning on in an effort to escape the hot, humid weather. I passed a law firm, an insurance agency, and the parole office. What a line-up! It’s too bad we need any of those places.
A couple of kids ran across the street in the crosswalk; all cars came to a screeching halt, as is the law. The kids looked like they had just come from the pool: their hair was wet and matted to their heads, and they each had a bag of belongings. I started thinking about how nice it would be to go to the pool. I haven’t been in years, and I don’t even own a bathing suit anymore. I kept driving.
Finally I got to the on- ramp and merged onto the highway. Again there was a lot of traffic. I spotted a broken down car along side of the road, a white t-shirt hanging from the window to indicate its dilapidated status. I felt bad for the owner of that car. What a horrible place to have it quit on you. I wondered if he walked to the next exit to get help, or if he had a cell phone to call someone to come find him on the highway, picking him up right there next to his pile of junk.
I started driving faster, wanting to get home as quickly as possible. I stepped on the gas and soon had to step on the brake. Pokey cars were blocking both lanes of traffic; I couldn’t get past them. How frustrating! Finally the slow car in the left lane merged to the right, giving me the opening I needed to be on my way. Well, I was on my way the whole time, but only frustrated part of the time. Now I had some relief!
The sky was cloudy and it started to rain. The strange thing was I was right on the edge of the storm cloud, so it would pour, then sprinkle, then stop, then pour again, all within a few seconds. I felt like I was in the Twilight Zone, or maybe just like I was driving through mountains. But the stretch ahead of me was straight- no mountains to block rain clouds. The last time I experienced such a thing was when I was a kid, and we were driving through the hills to get from Pennsylvania to New York state. I found myself in wonder at the weather, marveling at how quickly it changed.
Finally I was about to get back off the highway. I slowed down and merged right. I was so glad to be almost home that I didn’t even get frustrated at the tractor trailer blocking both lanes at the end of the ramp. I just waited patiently for my turn to get on the next road. I made a right onto it, and now I was in the home stretch.
After about two miles, I turned right into my driveway and into the carport. I put the car in park: lights off, iPod off and unplugged, ignition off. Keys in hand, I grabbed my purse and workbag and went into the house. Ahh…. home at last. I turned on the central air and then went to the bedroom, flopping down on the bed and enjoying every second of comfort and relaxation.
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