A Whole World of Suburbs

       This posting is a bit embarrassing to me. But driving out to the suburbs every day has shown me that there is a whole world out there beyond the center of the city. 

       This shouldn’t come as a surprise to me. The population of the greater metropolitan area here is around six times the size of the city population. But I somehow had remained pretty much closed to that during my first six years here. 

       The place I take Olympia for grooming, for example, used to seem very far away. When she was due for a haircut, I would often plan to spend several hours in the neighborhood of the grooming business so that I wouldn’t have to make the long drive back and forth twice in one day. 

       I should have known there was something wrong with my perception of this. People frequently asked me where I take her, and I would always begin by saying it was pretty inconvenient to get to. Then, when I would tell them the address, they would nearly always respond that it wasn’t far at all. 

       I now realize that this far away locale is actually six exits closer to the city than is our current home. Now that I am used to highway driving, I pass by that exit in the blink of an eye.

       Also, I have a cousin in the greater metropolitan area whose home is actually four exits closer to the city than is our new home. Yet I rarely visited him there – even when he offered me access to the swim club to which he gets a membership every summer. Although I thanked him for his kindness, I honestly couldn’t fathom driving 20 minutes just to go swimming. 

       But now, when I drive past his exit every day, on the way to our new home, I am amazed at how quickly I get there. I just listen to a few songs on the radio, maybe sing along a bit, occasionally change lanes…and I am there. A few minutes later, it’s time to turn off for my own home.

       And last week, I went to a meeting of my book club at a new member’s home – two exits closer to the city than is our new home. I would never have considered driving out there a couple of months ago. Instead, I would have asked another member to drive me out to this mysterious area. But last week, I found the new member's home without a problem. 

       And when it was time to leave, she told me not to go back to the highway to get to our new home, but rather drew me a map of a quick shortcut to my own neighborhood. And in that way, I discovered that we are very nearly neighbors. When she wants all-you-can-eat sushi, I’m sure she goes to the same place that Tom and I heard about. We have already made plans to get together for lunch after our move.

       And this is all on just one highway, traveling in just one direction from the city. 

       I happen to know that there are highways in other directions as well. I have, at Tom’s insistence, finally looked at a map of the area after six years of living here. I now that there is a whole world of suburbs out there sprawling in all directions – beyond the core of the city. 

       I have always been delighted to travel to some of the furthest reaches on the planet, but I have denied myself all but the closest reaches of my own metropolitan area. 

       I feel ridiculous indeed.