I have no sense of direction. This is not just a throw away statement that means I’m not very good at reading maps or something - I genuinely lack a sense of direction. You know what else? I also have trouble telling left from right. That’s right, I’m admitting it. In public. One of those no brainer things that any five year old can master and I struggle with it. I’m not too bad with my own left or right, although I do have to think about it for a second - I just remind myself that the hand I write with is my right. (Oh God, writing it down makes me sound even more stupid than I thought!) I can usually manage that, but I dread people saying things like “move to my right”. Huh? I have trouble telling my own left from right, how am I supposed to figure out someone else’s?! And north, south, east and west are all good and well, but how am I supposed to know which direction is which? Do people actually know this? How do they know? Seriously. It’s a mystery. Don’t talk to me about where the sun sets or rises, this is of no use to me. And when people talk about their “south (or possibly north?) facing” windows I just nod and smile and pretend to understand what that means, but I don’t. I really, really don’t. Oh, and when I’m talking about somewhere and I point outside, I’m just making a general “out there” kind of gesture, there‘s no reason to correct me and point to me to wherever it really is because it means nothing to me. Also, I don’t care.
I have to admit it is kind of embarrassing when I go somewhere new and I have to ask someone to direct me back home again. Most people seem to think this should be easy, surely you just go back the way you came? Yeah, maybe it should be easy, but not for me. This is mostly a problem while driving, and I do tend to get lost a lot. I always panic, too. I become irrational and I think I’m never going to find my way there - or home, even. The lack of control is frightening. Of course I do always eventually find my way to places and back again, it just may take a lot longer than necessary. If I need to be somewhere important I’ll often go on a reconnaissance mission beforehand to familiarise myself with the journey. Although getting somewhere once is absolutely no guarantee I’m going to be able to find my way there again, but it’s better than doing the trip blind. I think this is also why I often volunteer to drive when I go out with friends - if I’m driving, someone else has to navigate, which is perfect. If someone else drives and I have to navigate, not so perfect. I have managed to get other people as lost as I get myself, which is quite an achievement, I think. And don’t even get me started on shopping centre car parks. It’s great that they have numbers and letters and colours for people like me, but apparently they only work when you remember to look at them before going inside. Several people have suggested getting a Sat Nav (for general driving, not shopping centre car parks), which I‘m really not that keen on. Normally I love gadgets, but they’ve always seemed like a very expensive street directory to me. However I am starting to think it might be a good idea. I do need all the help I can get, and maybe I could even arrive somewhere new without feeling angry, frustrated and teary. That would be nice.
I totally hear you. I spend a lot of my life in lessons pointing at some random direction out of the window only to have a class of 30 or so 11 year olds tellling me the Sports Hall is "over there" and not within the the vague sector I was deliberately motioning to. I shouldn't be so hard of yourself - I think knowing the actual direction that something is in is irrelevant. More important is the succession of motorway exits you need to take and your ability to read signs. Ironically, my wife, despite not being able to tell her left from here right, has an amazing sense of direction. If she could just learn to point rather than use "left" or "right" we'd be a good team.
ReplyDeleteOnce I have learnt a way to get from A to B, I do not need to, nor do I have nay interest in, someone telling me I could "cut through here" or whatever instead.
I can get from A to C. I can get from A to B. But sometimes, to get from B to C I just connect bt A to B and B to C routes together. Mayeb it is inefficient, but now my iPod plays in my car I find it a whole lot less bothersome these days.
And should you find yourslef in a position where you are hosting someone in your own supposed neck of the woods, please remember reconnaisance missions are totqally unnecessary. I have no doubt the people you might be showing around would not be judgemental and would, in fact, feel more empathy than you might realise. Getting placesyou don't drive to on autopilot is a team game.
And whilst I am here I have a tip for car parks too. Leave your lights on. This way, you'll always know which one is yours. Of course, you'd need to carry a spare battery and go on a course on how to replace your car battery, but you will only need two on rotation. Seriously though, does your mobile have a cameraphone? I have gotten into the habit of taking a picture of the grid reference because I know I won't remember.
So I should ask Melly to read the map, then?
ReplyDeleteFreeways scare me. I'm always afraid I'm going to miss the exit and have to use the next exit which means having to find my way back to where I was meant to be in the first place. I totally understand your preference of going A to B to C. I will always prefer to take the long way that I know rather than a supposed shorter way that I don't. And while I very much appreciate the empathy with regards to driving visitors around, I will at least try to familiarise myself with the location of your hotel before you arrive!