The Voice

While driving around town, I frequently spot familiar faces and want to stick my head out of the car to shout "Hi (insert person's name)!" If I'm on a neighborhood side street, I sometimes even stop to catch up. On the more heavily traveled roads, however, my good intentions can go awry.

One afternoon while coasting down Morningwood Drive, I saw a friend who had been ill. Delighted that she was out and about, I called "Hi (name)!" Unfortunately, I travel faster on Morningwood Drive than I do on a neighborhood side street. By the time she heard my voice and looked up, I was gone. In the rear view mirror I saw her searching for a disembodied voice. Luckily I was able to make a legal U-turn, drive back to her house, stop for a minute and greet her properly.

I wasn't so lucky on Bowie Mill Road. One morning I spotted another friend fetching the newspaper at the end of her driveway. Again, I yelled, "Hi (name)!" but since I was on Bowie Mill Road during rush hour, I couldn't slow down … unless I wanted to cause a multi-car pileup. All I could do was drive on and watch my friend in my rear view mirror look up, searching the air above, behind and all around her for the source of the mysterious voice.

When I got home, I called her. Ring, ring... "Hi, this is Daphne. Sorry - that was me just a few minutes ago that shouted hello. I wanted to say hi but then realized I couldn't slow down in that traffic." 

My friend laughed, "I was wondering who was calling me! My daughter? My neighbor? The wind? Thanks for calling and letting me know I'm not crazy and hearing voices!"

Biking in Olney: Up Close and Personal

This fall's mild temperatures have been a boon for my transportation in Olney. Although I've lived here more than a decade, I never dared to bike on Bowie Mill or Cashell Roads (the two major streets outside of my neighborhood) for fear of being hit by a car. Now that Cashell Road has a sidewalk running its entire length (unlike Bowie Mill Road), I feel connected to the outside world without even having to climb into a car.

Errands into town are a pleasant 15-minute bike ride from the corner of Bowie Mill and Cashell Roads to Morningwood Drive, along Morningwood and then out to Route 108 in any spot, depending on my destination. No need to worry about speed cameras, since I pedal at a brisk but leisurely pace (hence the 15 minutes into town). What I enjoy about biking is seeing people, places and scenes up close and at a slow speed (relative to driving). I may spot a vaguely familiar figure jogging in the distance only to realize as I ride closer that yes, I do know the person! Then I'll ride by, greeting the jogger with a friendly "Hey [name of person]! How's it going?" If I yelled this while driving by in a car, I would just seem like an anonymous stalker.

My up close viewpoint has afforded me glimpses into the Olney library construction site (gorgeous and coming along ... and hopefully worth the wait and future bike trips), the post office's mailboxes for cars (convenient!) and even the stalwart sign man in a wheelchair.  Everything is magnified to the senses, from the loud vacuum cleaners at Fletcher's car wash to the large, fast and sometimes scary cars at the Georgia Avenue/Route 108 intersection.

Hopefully the fine weather will last a bit longer so I can try the drive-through windows at the bank and CVS pharmacy. Technically, I am "driving" through on a bike, so I hope I'll be allowed to use these lanes. I don't think I'll try hauling home groceries (especially eggs and other perishables) by bike, though.