by Amy Reese

Not the Flash!

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So, I forgot it takes 25 minutes to get 2.9 miles in rush hour. And it was dark. And RAINING! It never rains. Maybe it was because of the lightning, but Siri malfunctioned. These are her instructions:

Make a left. Then left again. Now make a U-Turn.

She took me into a parking lot. Oh, my god, she’s a lunatic! What kind of directions are these?

I don’t do lost well, especially when it’s dark. And raining. I wasn’t necessarily in brand new area, but one what that always confuses me and I haven’t been there in a long time. Now, I remember why. It’s a maddening place to be lost in. You know those intersections that branch off into six different directions but there are no turns. If you miss the veer right and quick to the right again, you’re screwed. That’s the first thing that happened.

By the time, I got myself turned around after several lefts and U-turns, I have the right street but I turn the wrong direction.

I nearly got myself killed in the process on this dark, stormy night. I was the deer in headlights. Lots of headlights. The road splits and I felt like I was facing ongoing traffic, so turned around and disoriented. In the middle of the intersection, I see a whole mess of cars with headlights pointed at me and above me, the red light! I have no choice but to go through. What else can I do? I see the Flash. No, not the DC character. The camera. It flashed!

The aftermath. I’m 30 minutes late to my first day at a job. My boss, “Why are you late again?”

My first $456 will go the ticket. Oh, please, please, not a ticket! Maybe they’ll notice the look of desperate horror on my face, and tear it up. Not likely.

It’s funny. What’s a few minutes late? Ten minutes, okay maybe 30 minutes. When you’re late, it truly seems like the worst thing in the world even though as it’s happening you coach yourself, talk yourself up, tell yourself you’ll get there and no matter what, it’s still better than dying.

What’s your late story? I want to hear all about it.

photo credit: Electrostatic Discharge via photopin (license)

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39 thoughts on “Not the Flash!”

  1. Hate it when that happens. Once on a dark and stormy night, I was traveling to the airport in a heavy downpour. I dont see well at night anyway and I got turned around at least 4 different times and made the same wrong turn each time. I was crying by the time it was all over. I feel your pain.

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    1. Oh no! Getting to the airport on time when you’re running late can be the worst! It’s easy to get turned around over and over. I’ve done it, too. I’ve cried those tears. Thanks for sharing with me.

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  2. Oh that’s miserable. I feel your pain because I recently had a similar ‘late’ experience. I was heading to a summit at the Cleveland Clinic last month. It was 6:15 am and dark. I’m happily driving along following my GPS instructions, only to find that in inner Cleveland, a road is closed and I can’t follow my GPS’s directions. I was in a neighborhood I didn’t know, one that looked scary in the dark, and very, very desolate. Every time I’d take the turn recommended by my GPS, it would lead me to the closed road. Somehow, with my heart in my throat, I finally made it to a road that was open and led me to my destination. It wasn’t a big deal to be late–not like it was for your job–but it was a tad stressful regardless.

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    1. Oh my goodness! To be at a dead end road. That sounds pretty dreadful, especially if it’s in a scary part of town. At least I had cars around, albeit lots of them, Carrie. It seems when we really count on GPS, it falls apart somehow. I mean didn’t it get the memo about the closed road?! Ha. I’m glad you got out of there, Carrie!

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  4. Amy, I am so directionally challenged, I wonder how i ever did it (drove and got to my destination) without a GPS. I think I must have stopped and asked people a lot. I know that anxious feeling though. As we were driving from NY to SC, we went via the GPS, through DC, but winding and twisting through desolate neighborhoods that didn’t look “safe,” but what do I know? Anyway, it’s never fun and neither are tickets! Especially those that are given via the camera. Hope it works out and I bet your boss will be understanding — she/he better be! It happens to everyone at some time or another.

    P.S. I also hate driving in rain (which we’ve had tons of lately) and it being dark. No fun at all. Hope you are great. ;).

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    1. Me too, Brigitte. It doesn’t take much for me to get all twisted and turned around. I wonder how I ever survived without GPS, too. But I also think it makes me lazy. As in this case! But the quick right really did it. I probably would have made the mistake even if I thought I knew where I was going. It happened so fast. Those camera tickets don’t seem fair even though you’re kind of caught in the act. But, but…I was lost! It probably won’t cut it. It’s a wonder these tickets are so expensive. It’s a gold mine for them. I’m glad you got out the desolate neighborhood ok. I can handle the dark, but the rain/dark combo is tough when you’re lost. I’m doing great, except for this! I hope you’re doing well, too. Great to see you, Brigitte. 🙂

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    2. I know the panicked feeling, Tracey, especially when you’re watching the clock and you see that you’re later and later. It’s such a hopeless feeling.
      I actually love the rain and am thrilled about the snow. Truly!! I just don’t like driving to new places in it. I will do another dance!

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  6. I’m glad you’re okay! That picture is awesome! I got caught by a traffic camera once – received the ticket in the mail… they’re sneaky! This was a good reminder for me to update the GPS in my car, actually… I think I will add it to the “honey-do” list right now before I forget! Thanks, Amy!

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    1. I didn’t know you can update your GPS, Kelly. I don’t think it would have helped in this case. I couldn’t even see the turn I was supposed to make. Oh, well. Very good, Kelly. I hope it makes all the difference and you get to your destinations warm, dry and ticketless. 🙂

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  9. Like already stated, getting to the airport on-time is critical. We got on the interstate, and after several miles, the traffic was crawling – very unusual for that time of day. We finally reached a point where I could see ahead … there it was …. two semi-trucks side by side, controlling the traffic flow like two pace cars …. … I decided to use the median to get ahead … so I passed some cars and a truck … another truck pulled into the left lane attempting to stop me … I stayed in the median … passed them and then the “lead” in the left lane … thus beating them to the point where the highway was reduced to one lane … and no problems getting to the airport.

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    1. Wow, Frank! What a story! You rebel, you. I know who to ask if I need to get to the airport in a hurry. I only dream about doing things like this. Are you sure you’re not moonlighting as a superhero? Are you hiding this from us? Thanks for sharing, Frank. 🙂

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    1. I’ve always struggled with time too, Bruce. Even when I set out to be early…well, that just means I’m on time. You’re not going to believe this, but I was late the next day, too! I hope I don’t get fired. It’s impossible to get somewhere in rush hour traffic. I was at a crawl for over an hour. It was the pits. At least now I know where I am going and I don’t have to rely on that Siri.

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  12. I was coming home from a trip once when we lived in MI and it was about dusk when I got to Detroit. The normal exit I would take was blocked by traffic (of course) because it was MI in the summer and it was I-75. Anyone from MI knows there are only 2 seasons… winter and construction, LOL!
    Anyway, I thought I would just go on down to the next exit and double back… yeah, no that didn’t work because there was no exit ramp back onto the highway. I ended up in a VERY bad part of town in a Bright Red Toyota Camry no less. I called my husband to tell him what had happened and he said, “How did you get lost in in downtown Detroit?” I said, “I am NOT lost! I know EXACTLY where I am, I just know I SHOULDN’T be here!!” This was back in the mid 90s when there was a lot of issues in certain parts of the city and way before the days of smart phones and GPS. While praying for Green lights, I finally got back on the highway and made it home, but I was certain of all routes through downtown from that day forward!!

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    1. Oh, Courtney that drives me crazy when you try to backtrack on an exit and it’s not there! How scary you ended up in a bad part of town. I’m just glad your car didn’t break down! That was smart to keep in touch with your husband. Good thinking. I’m not sure how I survived without GPS. I just completely rely on it now and most of the time, I can count on it. Thanks for sharing your story, Courtney. 🙂

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