First of all, I was asked if I could switch my appointment a full two-hour block later today. I had a chance to move today's "work" to Thursday, but given that my "boss" broached the idea, I didn't want to bat that down. Then I heard yesterday about the snow, but even though it was going to hit squarely at the time I was on the road, they said it'd be only an inch. I'm Minnesotan -- if I can't handle that, why stay in Minnesota?
Since it was late and it was snowing, I decided to just take a side street home. Then I thought, Well, if I do have a little time for coffee, why not go to this place? I wanted to try the Wilde Roast Cafe again. Had been there a couple times before, but the last time I was, I was there for, like, 10 minutes because they closed at 10 p.m. Geez, these guys go to sleep as early as my parents do. But since I had a lot more time, I could enjoy their sweet, easygoing mocha.
That would be the last calming thing I would have the rest of the evening.
This area of town, called Nordeast, is not in a grid pattern. The WRC is just off the road from Central Ave., the side street I wanted to take all the way home. When I started driving home, I thought I needed to get to Central by taking a quick left somehow. But as I moved forward I saw that the alley I thought I was on turn into a street. Hmmm, maybe I'll just take this down and see if I can hang a left at a stoplight or something.
No dice. This street was E. Hennepin, and pretty soon I found myself in the middle of several long lines for evening rush. Instead of taking the side streets all the way up, I was lost, and the only way I could find my way home now was to get onto 35WN, in the teeth of evening rush. Once I found a way to get onto an on-ramp (I turned onto a two-lane, and I chose the wrong lane -- I thought the one I was on was going to get me to 35WN, but it actually was 35WS. Goddamn, I have to get a compass for the car one of these days) I spent my the next goddamn motherfucking 30-5 minutes in 45 m.p.h. traffic.
The damage done to my car is horrific. It absolutely infuriates me when I accelerate just when I see the brake lights of the car in front of me flash on, then I either brake hard immediately or brake slowly and just after my automatic transmission shifts into the nexst gear, and then I come to a complete stop just as the car in front of me starts accelerating. It was like that all the way home, in a snowfall that was a bit harder than I thought it'd be. Plus I had to spend five minutes on the driveway clearing all the dirty snow the tires spun onto the underside of the car; and I had the car washed just three days ago! Finally, since I never did drive more than 45 all the way up, the oil in the engine never burned up the way it should have. So now my car's in the driveway with an overworked transmission, dirty oil in the engine and melting snow about to make a permanent mark alll over my car.
The last time I worked a 9-to-5 job was in early 2003, and tonight I remembered why the commute was one of the things I hated the most. And all of this because I didn't, like, cut through the gas station to get onto Central. No, I indulged my tentative wanderlust and stayed my course, and I ended up damaging my car. Well, I still would've driven slowly, so the oil was still going to be fucked and there'd be snow on my car regardless, but the transmission wouldn't be so shot because there definitely would be a lot less bump-and-go traffic going up Central. Plus, I would've been home in half the time; instead, I damaged my car twice as long as I should have.
No, I can't work this late again. Have to change.
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Should add this. Father called me to ask when I was coming home. 'Rents were waiting for me for a second day in a row. Not a good feeling. And when I went to the bathroom to wash my hands I smelled a hellacious scent. My Fucking God, Grandmother, what did you shit out?!?!?! Paint was peeling off the walls, for shit's sake!!!
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