You Might Miss Something

I went on a couple of errands today that turned into a bit of an adventure.
My first errand was to go get my phone fixed. I’d been told that there is a shop in Escondido that does nothing but fix phones, so I called them last week and finally made it over there today. I had already googled the directions, which I still print out because I don’t trust Siri. Anyhow, I always get turned around in Escondido and today was no exception. I drove right past the store and had to make a u turn to go back. Twice.
The owner had told me it would only take 20 minutes and suggested I go get a cup of coffee. So, I got back in my car and went in search of a place to kill some time. I passed a Starbucks as I’m not a coffee drinker and cannot understand why people pay $5.00 for a caffeine fix. Instead, I decided on Denny’s and went in and had breakfast where I paid over $2.00 for a cup of hot water basically. And after I’d brewed my tea, I ended up not drinking it because it tasted like soap. Yuk.
Meanwhile, I tried to pick up my phone about four times. Duh!
Anyway, the adventure part hadn’t started, yet. After getting turned around – again – I found my way back to the Fix It store to pick up my phone. It looks great. Works fine. But I should have asked how much this repair was going to cost before I agreed. I expected it to be about $20 or $25 dollars and it was closer to $100.00. Whoops. To me, a $100 is a lot of money. I may have chosen to have it fixed anyway, but I should have asked…
Next I went in search of a bakery. I had discovered this bakery in class last semester when I had a group of students looking for local places to buy various goodies. And one group shared about Webekings Bakery. I was impressed with the name and decided I would pay them a visit, but they closed before my class started, so I knew I’d have to make a special trip someday. As Escondido is pretty far from Oceanside, I waited until I had two things to do in town.
With a map in hand, I had spent my time eating my breakfast and making sure I knew where I was going. Nonetheless, I drove right past it. Circled around the block and finally pulled over to call them. Turns out I was right around the corner, but it was worth the trip. Their pastries were to die for. Yummy!
So, where’s the adventure? The adventure is that the bakery is located at the intersection where I had turned to go to school four nights a week for the entire semester yet I hadn’t seen it. Even after our class assignment – when the students pointed it out on a map – I drove right by. Many, many times.
And I’m wondering how often we fail to see the wonderful things that are right in our path? How often do we drive right by? How often are we so intent on getting where we are “supposed to be” that we fail to take in our surroundings?
Life is an adventure. Slow down a bit. You might miss something.