Sunday, March 26, 2017

The Road Less Traveled



Growing up, my brothers and I were taken on a lot of Sunday drives. Whether visiting family or friends, Dad would invariably take the long way.

As a result I learned a lot about driving. My father gladly schooled us on everything. I learned how to drive on ice, navigate safely with a flat tire, and how to handle detours.

To this day I consider official construction detours to be for losers and commercial truck drivers. With modern GPS navigation finding another way around has become both simpler and trickier.

In between my suburb and a larger town a major intersection has been blocked with railroad work. Officials want drivers to go miles out of their way on major roads.

To heck with that, I thought.

Immediately I remembered a long ago missed turn showing me a winding path past this closure to my desired route. Finding it again I saved the spot in my navigation system titled ‘Railroad Detour’. But when I left home this morning to head there my car kept telling me to head in a counterintuitive direction.

I ignored her.

Finally driving beyond ‘my’ detour, I once more called up navigation, this time to find again a more pleasant back road to the YMCA. Don’t you know, the darn thing still tried redirecting me to a major business route plagued with stoplights and excess traffic.

So, I bookmarked yet another waypoint until I get accustomed to my course. Dad would be proud. I know the minor rebel in me is happy.

Do you, dear reader, enjoy driving? Do you like bucking convention?

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12 comments:

  1. Like you, there is rebel in me and if I have the GPS on, I like to take a different turn just to redirect it! lol....Honestly I don't use mine much, I know all the back roads around me and that is the way I rather travel. But I take it further than that, I travel back roads in areas I have not been, just to see where I turn up! Driving...I love it. I do my best thinking and plotting when I drive!

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    1. I do like turning on the navigation system just to see what routes I'm *not* taking sometimes. ~nods~ And it's helpful when I travel beyond the local regions, for sure.

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  2. Like you, there is rebel in me and if I have the GPS on, I like to take a different turn just to redirect it! lol....Honestly I don't use mine much, I know all the back roads around me and that is the way I rather travel. But I take it further than that, I travel back roads in areas I have not been, just to see where I turn up! Driving...I love it. I do my best thinking and plotting when I drive!

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    1. What a kindred spirit, Pam. I do believe you take the organic process more seriously. Be well and drive safe!

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  3. I love a good back road. Or a windy out of the way route. When I can find them.

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  4. I often ignore my satnav. Not always a success but fun non-the-less :) So pleased you learned a lot from your dad. Lovely post. Have a great week.

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    1. It's nice to meet another intrepid adventurer. ~grin~ I hope you have a great week, too.

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  5. There have been some sad stories in Oregon of people who tried alternate routes suggested by a GPS map router. The Kim family became the most famous victims. He was a high tech guy from S.F. on vacation with his family. They missed their turn onto 42 and decided on a much more dangerous route. http://www.salon.com/2007/01/11/kim_6/

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    1. Thank you for sharing. How sad. I saw an incredible story about a guy who went hiking at night, alone, with no water or food or even a flashlight. An experienced hiker (!), he almost didn't survive. In fact, by all rights he should not have. He was lucky.

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  6. I love driving but I reguarly get into arguments with bossy woman who thinks she knows the way better than I do. Why I use that wretched sat-nav I really don't know!

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    1. Heh... Is it Rosy bossing you? I adore your stories through her eyes.

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