Today's Commute

My daily commute is an easy one. I use a main east/west arterial, Paseo del Norte, to go east; then take a 4-lane city street to go south. I don’t get on the freeway, and I’m at my desk about 25 easy minutes after I leave home.

Maybe I should have said, "It’s an easy commute most days." This morning Paseo del Norte was closed due to a terrible accident. From our part of town, there are only three streets that bridge the river. With the major one closed, traffic on the west side was snarled in every direction. My 25-minute commute took two hours and five minutes today.


But there were things to be thankful for, even this morning . . .

• I arrived at work safe and sound. I wasn’t on Paseo del Norte a few minutes earlier (as I am some mornings) where I could have been involved in the accident.

• I had just filled my gas tank yesterday, so I didn’t run out of fuel as I sat, idling, for most of two hours.

• While stuck on Coors Blvd., crawling mere inches every five minutes, a nice young lady, wearing a smile and a Starbuck’s apron, walked down the line of cars, handing out complimentary chai tea lattes. Way to mellow out stressed-out commuters!


• And while moving down Montano Rd., at a snail’s pace, I was able to open the car window and snap pictures of some of the fall foliage.