So today was my first day to run errands alone. Wow, it sucks.
First, I had to have the GPS because there is NO WAY IN HELL I am going to know where I am going, let alone where anything is OR how to get home IF I happened to find anything. 🙄 And as I was ready to pull out of the driveway, I realized I didn’t have my GPS—Tom had both of them! So I had to wait for him to come home for lunch!
Second, there is construction on one of the MAJOR roads, which slows traffic down considerably. I am sure there are alternate routes (and the GPS could give me one if I told it to) but I don’t want to get too confused this early—and most of the time the GPS just tries to reroute me BACK TO the under-construction-area. 🙄
Third, the traffic—just speaking generally—is horrible. Which leads to…
Fourth, it seems like no one is paying attention at any time. Today I came THISCLOSE to getting rear-ended because some idiot two cars back wasn’t paying attention and didn’t notice (I guess) that we were all AT A COMPLETE STOP. I heard screeching and braking and as I looked in my rearview mirror, heard a loud THUNK as some idiot careened off the road up onto the curb/lawn to avoid hitting the lady behind me. Then, as if nothing had happened, just waited for traffic to start again and he plunked down off the curb. (Well, I guess nothing did happen, and I guess he wasn’t supposed to just sit there looking like a moron, but still, it just seemed so nonchalant.)
Fifth, for the drivers that are paying attention, some are just plain rude. Yes, traffic sucks. But to wait in the center turn lane with your blinker on, waiting to get into traffic, and then have to cross THE OTHER THREE LANES of traffic to make your turn? >:XX Try going a different direction. Drivers are constantly wanting you to let them pull out into traffic, and then making other lanes wait as they cross multiple lanes of traffic. So you add this to the people not paying attention? Aye yay yay.
Sixth, we live right in the center of town (pretty much) so are right in the middle of all the major thoroughfares. Which mostly have no left turns. To make a left, you have to turn right, then get immediately in the special left-turn lane in order to go back the other direction. I’m getting used to it, but it’s a pain—especially when you add in the traffic and the rude and non-alert drivers. Luckily some of them have lights. But some are one lane and some are two lanes and you never know which ones have lights. Fun!
And I am sure I am forgetting some.
So today I was gone for about three hours, traveled about 15 miles total, and only made three of my six stops—the doctor, Petsmart, and Costco. I kept missing the post offices (wrong side of the road, too hard to get back over, GPS was wrong) and I gave up on the credit union (I missed my turn, which then sent me a half mile out of my way, at which point I was close to home and said screw it, I’m tired, I’m going home), and Kroger—which was actually ON the way home, but it was another screwy left turn and I was exhausted.
Are we done yet?