My Navigation System

Mark has a wonderful sense of direction. It always amazes me that he doesn't need to write down the directions that he gets. It's like he has an internal GPS that tells him when to turn and how to get to places he's never been before. When I ask how he'll find a new place, I always get some kind of cryptic answer like "well I know the general direction I need to go, so I'm sure I can find it." And he does. It's really kind of unsettling.

I also have an internal GPS system, but I believe that mine may be broken. Oh, I can get to work, church, the grocery store, and the homes of (most) of our family members who live in the area. But any time I have to go somewhere I don't drive all the time, I have problems. I can see in my mind where I need to go and could even tell you some of the landmarks I need to pass to get there. The problem is that I usually have no idea how to get to them. Here's a good example: I had a dentist appointment on Monday. I've had the same dentist since Mark and I got married 8 years ago. I've been to her office a few times. I've been told that, for most people, the process of driving to the dentist's office isn't usually the most stressful part of the visit. Nevertheless, there I was on Sunday night, reciting the instructions on how to get to my dentist's office to a very supportive, yet somewhat amused Mark. We go through this ritual every time I need to drive somewhere I don't go every day. Usually when I finish my narrative on how I think I could probably get my destination, Mark does one of two things. He either says "well..... you COULD go that way" or he gets a certain look on his face that lets me know that what I just said is NOT the way to get to destination X, and he's trying to think of a gentle way to let me know that. Either way, I usually have to try again a few times before I figure it out.

The funny thing is, Mark has been saying that he'd like to get a GPS for our car for a while now. And I've been resisting. Maybe it's about time I gave in...