Going Out of My Way

I have never been a fan of the dentist.  I've never had a root canal and I've not had that many fillings either, but it seems like every time I go to the dentist for my cleaning I end up with a TMJ-induced headache and canker sores a couple days later. 

Hubby doesn't like the dentist either.  In fact, it's safe to say he HATES the dentist and he has every reason to (lets just say he had a bad experience as a teenager and leave it at that).  Anyway, the dentist I had when I was in braces has an office near where I used to work.  When I stopped working, I used a dentists more local to our house and regretted it.  I then decided, the drive was worth it.

Today, I had a dentist appointment around lunch. Being that the dentist's office was 30 miles away, I knew it would take a while, but last night I received an email from a friend (thanks Jennifer) letting me know that there was a big celebration that would have traffic on my normal route a bit backed up so I found a longer route that would completely avoid the area in question. 

I pulled up to the dentist with two minutes to spare.  Good thing, because I parked way across the parking lot so that I could park in the shade.  You see today is supposed to get close to 100.  I am a firm believer in going out of my way and parking far away from the store/ doctor/ dentist if it means parking in the shade (especially if you know you are going to be inside for more than 5 minutes).  It was SO worth it, because when I got back to the car almost an hour later, it didn't feel that bad. 

The thing that gets me, is that people give me a look when I park way out in the parking lots.  It's like they think I'm crazy for passing up the parking space that is closer to the store.  Yeah, I walk outside in the heat longer, but I will be getting into a car that feels like it's in the 80's rather than the 100's.  Which of us is smarter?  Hmmmm....

The Conquering Hero

I did it! I did a bunch of errands driving the truck.  What's more is that I got to the point where I feel comfortable driving the "Beast."  I still have not gone through a drive through but I think I've practiced in enough other situations that I can at least determine if I should even try a given drive through.  For example, I will be able to do my bank with no problems.  The Wendy's however is another story.

For those of you keeping track.. hubby is conquering the travel trailer (meaning the upgrades are in progress).  The hope is for us to be leaving Virginia by Jan 5th or so. 

Baby steps

Yesterday I took the next step in learning how to drive our new truck.  I got rid of my training wheels (aka. hubby) and drove the truck by myself.  OK, maybe not totally by myself since the kids were in the back seat.  I was even driving it in the rain!  I did park WAY out so I didn't have to worry about crashing into anyone else.  Overall, a very good experience.

Today however I was a bit chicken.  I decided not to drive the truck while doing some errands with the kids.  Specifically, I was afraid I would not be able to park the truck at the library or make it through the Starbucks drive-thru.  I would have been able to park at the library, but when I saw someone trying to park a truck of the same size at the Costco I knew I'd made the right decision.