I Have the Map Right Here

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6/25/07 “ I have the map right here.”

It is our last night in London. Scott and Will and watching Lord of the Rings, nothing new there…they do that every weekend. Justin and I are reading our books in bed and in anticipation of getting our new car and going Bath in the morning, I ask Scott if he knows how to get there. He replies….”Of course I do, I have the map right here.” Justin and looked at each other and burst out laughing. Justin said that the map was why we have spent so many days lost in London. How right he was.

Now, here is the part where Scott and I are so different. (And why we will kill each other before ever returning to the USA) He has his head in a map all day everyday. Don’t get me wrong…a map is a great tool. It would have really helped to have one when we were wandering around London that first night miles away from our apartment, lost with no orientation of the city in the freezing cold. It is a great planning accessory.

I on the other hand can barely read a map and they just confuse me. I, however, am a keen observer of my surroundings. I watch all the people, signs, buildings, shops, streets and have been known to get my bearings and learn a place very quickly. After a few days in a place, I generally know how to get around, hence my past success driving in NY City and roaming around Paris. This annoys Scott. He tries to tell me the way to go and I dispute him, only to be right 90% of the time (I’m wrong some too). I try to tell him we passed the sign to the place we are going, or I saw the green house next to the restaurant we want on the way to the museum…and he looks at me like I am crazy.

Oh well different styles…and approaches to life. We need both of us to survive this adventure and raise our kids. I just hope we make it to Bath!

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