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Fake
I have a bit of an obsession, and it involves my car. As anyone who lives in Hampton Roads can tell you, there is never any guarantee of a smooth commute, and it is impossible to go anywhere in a straight line. That’s one of the things, even ten years later, I still miss about Memphis. Most of the major thoroughfares run on a simple North/South and East/West grid. So it’s easy to figure out where you’re headed. Here the water rules everything. It forces us to choose bridges and tunnels. It bends our streets or cuts them off. It creates choke points that snarl traffic. (By the way, have you ever noticed that the word “snarl” as a verb meaning “to tangle” is almost exclusively used in reference to traffic?)
Which leads to my obsession. I am pathologically fixated on figuring out the fastest way to “get there.” It drives me crazy to be stuck in traffic. So every commute becomes an exercise in getting the most up-to-date information on traffic conditions. (610 am is my favorite radio station.)
And I’m consumed with figuring out the streets that have the least traffic. For instance, I’m convinced that 35th Street is the best way to get from Hampton Boulevard to Granby Street. 20th Street is better than 21st for going between Colley Ave. and Monticello. And I believe that, in the afternoons, Church St. is better than Monticello/St. Paul’s for getting to the Downtown Tunnel…unless there’s a train at 21st. And don’t even get me started on moving around Western Branch. I-664 versus Dock Landing and Taylor Rd? The jury’s still out.
Now, I’m aware that all of my scheming probably doesn’t make much of a difference. I’m not regaining meaningful portions of my day. And I’m certainly wrong in thinking I know which routes are fastest. But what I like is the sense of control that I get, even if it is imagined. Anything’s better than just sitting in traffic. If I sit still, I might have to pray or think about my life. I’d much rather keep moving.
This week we’re going to hear a warning from Paul about being in too much of a hurry. He tells the Colossians that it provides a short cut to the “appearance of wisdom,” but in the end it is of “little value.” My prayer is that we can learn to embrace the slower, more authentic way of Christ. -Robert
22These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings. 23 Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. (Colossians 2)
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Fake
I have a bit of an obsession, and it involves my car. As anyone who lives in Hampton Roads can tell you, there is never any guarantee of a smooth commute, and it is impossible to go anywhere in a straight line. That’s one of the things, even ten years later, I still miss about Memphis. Most of the major thoroughfares run on a simple North/South and East/West grid. So it’s easy to figure out where you’re headed. Here the water rules everything. It forces us to choose bridges and tunnels. It bends our streets or cuts them off. It creates choke points that snarl traffic. (By the way, have you ever noticed that the word “snarl” as a verb meaning “to tangle” is almost exclusively used in reference to traffic?)
Which leads to my obsession. I am pathologically fixated on figuring out the fastest way to “get there.” It drives me crazy to be stuck in traffic. So every commute becomes an exercise in getting the most up-to-date information on traffic conditions. (610 am is my favorite radio station.)
And I’m consumed with figuring out the streets that have the least traffic. For instance, I’m convinced that 35th Street is the best way to get from Hampton Boulevard to Granby Street. 20th Street is better than 21st for going between Colley Ave. and Monticello. And I believe that, in the afternoons, Church St. is better than Monticello/St. Paul’s for getting to the Downtown Tunnel…unless there’s a train at 21st. And don’t even get me started on moving around Western Branch. I-664 versus Dock Landing and Taylor Rd? The jury’s still out.
Now, I’m aware that all of my scheming probably doesn’t make much of a difference. I’m not regaining meaningful portions of my day. And I’m certainly wrong in thinking I know which routes are fastest. But what I like is the sense of control that I get, even if it is imagined. Anything’s better than just sitting in traffic. If I sit still, I might have to pray or think about my life. I’d much rather keep moving.
This week we’re going to hear a warning from Paul about being in too much of a hurry. He tells the Colossians that it provides a short cut to the “appearance of wisdom,” but in the end it is of “little value.” My prayer is that we can learn to embrace the slower, more authentic way of Christ. -Robert
22These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings. 23 Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. (Colossians 2)
|
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Fake
I have a bit of an obsession, and it involves my car. As anyone who lives in Hampton Roads can tell you, there is never any guarantee of a smooth commute, and it is impossible to go anywhere in a straight line. That’s one of the things, even ten years later, I still miss about Memphis. Most of the major thoroughfares run on a simple North/South and East/West grid. So it’s easy to figure out where you’re headed. Here the water rules everything. It forces us to choose bridges and tunnels. It bends our streets or cuts them off. It creates choke points that snarl traffic. (By the way, have you ever noticed that the word “snarl” as a verb meaning “to tangle” is almost exclusively used in reference to traffic?)
Which leads to my obsession. I am pathologically fixated on figuring out the fastest way to “get there.” It drives me crazy to be stuck in traffic. So every commute becomes an exercise in getting the most up-to-date information on traffic conditions. (610 am is my favorite radio station.)
And I’m consumed with figuring out the streets that have the least traffic. For instance, I’m convinced that 35th Street is the best way to get from Hampton Boulevard to Granby Street. 20th Street is better than 21st for going between Colley Ave. and Monticello. And I believe that, in the afternoons, Church St. is better than Monticello/St. Paul’s for getting to the Downtown Tunnel…unless there’s a train at 21st. And don’t even get me started on moving around Western Branch. I-664 versus Dock Landing and Taylor Rd? The jury’s still out.
Now, I’m aware that all of my scheming probably doesn’t make much of a difference. I’m not regaining meaningful portions of my day. And I’m certainly wrong in thinking I know which routes are fastest. But what I like is the sense of control that I get, even if it is imagined. Anything’s better than just sitting in traffic. If I sit still, I might have to pray or think about my life. I’d much rather keep moving.
This week we’re going to hear a warning from Paul about being in too much of a hurry. He tells the Colossians that it provides a short cut to the “appearance of wisdom,” but in the end it is of “little value.” My prayer is that we can learn to embrace the slower, more authentic way of Christ. -Robert
22These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings. 23 Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. (Colossians 2)
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