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Daily Archives: October 23, 2013

Thoughts about driving

23 Wednesday Oct 2013

Posted by laurieanichols in postaday, postaday2013, Uncategorized

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blogging, cars, Driving, postaday2013, writing

My hubby and I have been driving a lot these past few weeks. I have been noticing the difference between driving in Boston, New York and most recently what it was like to be driven around in taxis in Miami. Both my hubby and I learned how to drive in New York City, so for us driving in New York is a known and comfortable experience. I have over the years learned how to drive in Boston which is a little different than New York because of how the city is set up, but overall the concept of city driving is the same. The key is being prepared before hand, starting your drive with a clear idea of where you are going and being proactive in your driving behavior. I know that there are times that you will find yourself driving lost and in those situations the key to keeping it together is to not panic, pull over and get your bearings, you will get there eventually. If there is one lesson that I have learned over the years of driving all over the place, I will get there when I get there. That simple saying takes a lot of pressure away from me and it allows me to concentrate on the road.

Driving in Miami is something that I definitely do not want to do, when we were down there together in the beginning of October,we witnessed a loud car accident right in front of the campus gates and I have to admit, I wasn’t surprised that it had happened, the street signs are poorly placed, the rules of the road seem to be ignored by the majority of drives, I didn’t feel safe as a pedestrian. I felt basically the same way I did when I was in Rome twenty years ago, in fear for my life when I was crossing the street. That may be an exaggeration, but still Miami is not a city that I want to drive in, I will take taxis thank you very much.

Driving in Europe used to be so different than driving here in the United States, the speeds were greater and the orientation of cities and towns are quite different. However for the most part I have never had an issue driving through France and Spain, it took a day or two to get comfortable driving at higher speeds but nowadays the speed limits have gotten closer to what we have in the States so I don’t see the difference, but having said this I don’t think that I would ever voluntarily drive in Paris. I never have in the past and I don’t see it in my future. I have driven in other French cities but Paris just seems much too crazy for me. It reminds me too much of Rome, a truly magnificent city but be careful when you cross the street. London is another city that I wouldn’t drive in because they drive on the side of the road that I am not conditioned to drive and that would be bad for all parties involved. It wouldn’t be pretty, it would be chaotic.

All of this driving has made me realize that as my hubby and I are getting older one of the things that we will have to take into account is what driving means to us and how we are going to manage our driving requirements. This is partly why moving to Boston in the future makes a lot of sense, we will be living in a city that has an excellent metro system. I say this because after a lifetime of driving, if I won lotto tomorrow, the first thing that I would do is employ a chauffeur, so that driving would become a choice and not the necessity it is nowadays. I had the unpleasant experience of having to put my foot down and tell my mother-in-law that she was no longer allowed to drive and it was an ongoing fight. I will not do that to my babies so that is why my hubby and I will be proactive and relocate eventually to the city so that we will no longer be dependent on the automobile.

Exhale

23 Wednesday Oct 2013

Posted by laurieanichols in Uncategorized

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Tell us about a time when everything seemed to be going wrong — and then, suddenly, you knew it would be alright.

I am fairly sure that I have answered this prompt before, but I don't remember what I had written, so I am answering this as if for the first time. I wonder if my memory will continue on this downward spiral and if every day will seem to be brand spanking new? That could be good, for me at least, because I won't know any better, but for those around me, I'm sure that it will be tedious and annoying.

Anyway, there was this one time when I had a friend flying in from Europe to visit me, this was way before the advent of cell phones and as I went into the garage to start my parent's car, all I heard was click, click. The battery was dead, I hit the steering wheel several times, it didn't change anything but I did feel better for doing it. I got out of the car, went to the bank and took out quite a bit of money because I had no other choice but to call a cab. Of course any time that you need a cab, there are none to be found, I waited an excruciating hour for the car to finally show up, by this time the plane had landed and it is a forty five minute drive out to JFK when there is no traffic, but on that day there was agonizing amounts of traffic everywhere, we couldn't have gone slower if I had harnessed the cab to my back and pulled it myself. We finally got to JFK and I told, not even asked, the driver to stay put, he was getting a return fare, us. I ran into the terminal and there was my friend waiting patiently, I hugged my friend and while we were in the cab I told my friend the whole story, that escapade put me back 80 dollars but getting my friend from the airport was definitely worth it and I know how anti cell phone I am normally but this was an instance where a cell phone would have made the situation less torturous.

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