Following Directions

Stand in the place where you live  
Now face North  
 Think about direction   
Wonder why you haven't before   
Now stand in the place where you work 
Now face West   
Think about the place where you live   
Wonder why you haven't before    
If you are confused check with the sun   
Carry a compass to help you along   
Your feet are going to be on the ground   
Your head is there to move you around

I am directionally-challenged.  GPS was probably invented for people like me.  I get confused inside of shopping malls.  I go into a store, come out and have to stand there for a few moments trying to remember which way I came and which way I want to go next.  This is probably one of the reasons I avoid malls.  To solve this, I usually start in one corner and just "go right" the entire way.

I do not own a GPS.  I probably should. I'll add one to my wish-list -- after a wi-fi tablet and gaming system.

Someone at work was talking about GPS the other day and I jokingly said that I had an old-school GPS.  It's where I wind down the passenger window and yell out to people on the street, "Hey, can you tell me where ------ is?"  It has worked so far.

I was telling a co-worker a few days ago that I had company coming this weekend and that I was trying to find some interesting restaurants to try out.  I don't eat out on a regular basis so whenever someone is visiting, I like to use it as an opportunity to try new things and explore new places.  She suggested a place called Fire Brew "off Nimmo Parkway."

Since moving here, I've been on Nimmo Parkway once before and that was to go to Sandbridge, a beachy part of town.  I don't remember much about it except that I remember trying to figure out if it was pronounced "Nimm-O or Neeem-O."  I seem to recall seeing a Wal-Mart.  I think we ate at some restaurant that had a surfer theme.  Yes, that's how much I paid attention to it.   I had people in my car who are not as directionally-challenged who were my co-pilots.

That said, I looked up the restaurant last night and made on-line reservations for 7.  On the restaurant's website, there was a link to "get directions".  I clicked it.  I was re-directed to Google maps.  I typed in my starting address and printed out driving directions.  They were very very simple.

Turn right on Bonney Road.

Turn right onto Rosemont Road.

Follow Rosemont Road to Dam Neck.

Turn right on Dam Neck.

Turn left on Princess Anne. 

Turn right on Nimmo Parkway.

Make a U-turn.

Destination is on your right at 1253 Nimmo Parkway.

Yeah.  This did not take us to the restaurant. 

We drove around a little bit, trying to figure it out.  No luck.  Found several municipal buildings, a fire station, a post office, and a strip mall.

There was a guy coming out of a Chinese restaurant.  I told my friend that I was going to ask him for directions.  She seemed mortified.

I put down the passenger window and asked him if he was from around there.  He was very pleasant.  He tried to look up directions on his fancy phone but wasn't getting a quick response from his 3G network.  He gave us these long-winded directions.  Turn right, go to the end, turn left.  Keep going and going and going.  Pass a 7-11 and a dentist.  Pass a construction site where a CVS is going up.  Turn right.  It's there.  Those are my kind of directions.  Old-school GPS.  Garmin doesn't tell you that stuff.

We thanked him and considered inviting him along.  He was around our age, ok looking, no wedding band and getting Chinese takeout on a Friday night.  I may go back next Friday and look for him.  I like Chinese and my Fridays are usually free.

My friend and I joked that he was sending us out into the middle of nowhere where he could follow us and murder us.

However, that was not the case.  We did find the restaurant and I enjoyed it.  

I think I might like to go back on my birthday, assuming I can find it again.