Remember in The Accidental Tourist how the entire Leary family was more than a little directionally challenged? If they had to go to, say, the post office and the hardware store, they'd go to the post office, go back home, and then go to the hardware store—they didn't know how to get from the post office to the hardware store without coming home first and starting out again. Well, that's me. I pretty much know only one way to get anywhere. I've gotten much better over the years, and I can usually find my way around my own turf, but once I've ventured beyond my familiar zone, forget it.
When I have to drive into town, I carefully review my route and make sure I understand it before I leave the house. The truth is that I've never really felt confident driving around Boston—I never lived or worked there, so I never had the opportunity to really learn how the various neighborhoods fit together. For those of you who've never been to Boston, it is not an easy city to navigate. It was certainly not built according to any nice, neat plan of blocks like Manhattan. There's a dearth of helpful signs, since Bostonians generally feel that if you don't know where you're going, you shouldn't be here, thank you very much. On top of that are the ubiquitous but unpredictable one-way streets and the constant rerouting due to road construction.
So, what happens if there's a detour, or I make a wrong turn, or I want to go elsewhere after I'm done with whatever I went there for? Color me lost. Like this morning. I was driving to Charlestown to Andy's office. In the 21+ years that I have known Andy, I have driven to his office approximately eight bazillion times. The vast majority of the time, I come and go with no trouble. But every now and then, I end up calling him to say, "Um, Andy? I'm in Chelsea!" or "Help, I'm in front of Hamersley's Bistro!" Today a big truck wouldn't let me get over to the left in time to get on 28 from Storrow, so I suddenly found myself on Beacon Hill. I couldn't reach Andy, so I just kept driving and driving, looking for somewhere to pull over. Finally I did and asked a woman for directions. Her plan had me driving all over the freaking world to get to Charlestown, but luckily Andy called me back just as I was about to start following her directions. I described as best I could where I was, and he said simply, "Take your next right and you should be able to get back on Storrow." Bingo! I was at his office in no time. But I could never, ever have figured that out on my own.
My iPhone has a nice little navigation system courtesy of Google maps, but it isn't something you can easily do while driving—or at least I couldn't do it while wending my way through rush-hour traffic downtown. Andy's new car has a built-in GPS that talks to you the whole time, saying things like, "Take a right in 100 feet." Maybe that should be a priority on my next car.
They do sell them to include in your current car. I'd give you a recommendation, but I am not familiar with car GPS systems.
Posted by: James | May 16, 2008 at 05:21 PM
Go to Best Buy and get one of those Tom Tom or similar devices! I got one for my husband who couldn't find his way out of a paper bag, and he loves it! It's a GPS & it talks to you and has a nice little road map on the screen too. You just put in your destination and off you go!
Posted by: Elena | May 16, 2008 at 07:33 PM
You could just wait a month or so and get the new 3G iPhone with built in GPS. Otherwise, I would get a Tom Tom.
Posted by: Generic_Humanoid | May 17, 2008 at 01:34 AM
Garmin makes a nice dash-mounted model with a decent-sized screen (with voice) that is relatively inexpensive (around $240). I got my dad one for Christmas and he absolutely loves it. I think the decent-sized view screen would be important, for me anyway!
Posted by: Tonya | May 17, 2008 at 02:45 AM
I get lost inside buildings. Even buildings I've been in many times. Don't think GPS would help in that case. (Better signage might, however.)
Posted by: Nancy | May 17, 2008 at 12:01 PM
OK, I'll come clean: When I'm sitting in my own house, I don't know what room is above or below me. If I don't look out the window, I don't know which way the school is, or the highway. When I'm in my own yard, I have to think long and hard about which window belongs to which room. There. Now you know the ugly truth.
Posted by: Karen | May 17, 2008 at 12:08 PM
I just got an iPhone last month, so I'm certainly not in line for a new model yet! Looking forward to the 2.0 software upgrade in June though -- can't stand deleting POP email messages individually.
Posted by: Karen | May 17, 2008 at 12:12 PM
OMG, Karen!! Get thee a Garmin... I bought one last spring, then promptly bought one each for Mom and Dad for MD and FD. Then I bought one for Michael for his BD since he kept borrowing mine (all the while insisting he didn't "need" one)
You can buy one that talks to you for $200 and it is about the size of a pack of playing cards. And I think it is waaaay better not to have it built in, then you can take it with you on trips or in other people's cars :)
Go. Now. To Amozon or Best Buy...wherever. Don't get lost again.
I'd give up my plam befor I'd give this thing up.Seriously.
Posted by: Risottogirl | May 18, 2008 at 09:50 PM