Dec. 12, 2004 - 17:05 MST

THE WONDERING JEW

Who - Where ?

Friday Heather and I set our sights toward taking Christmas presents to our daughter in an assisted living home in Greeley, Colorado. She hasn't been there long, having been with the foundation for some years in Denver, Leyden House was closed and the residents moved to a new building there in Greeley.

It grieves us that she is so far away and will be out of our reach during the snowy, icy parts of winter. Sixty miles on dry pavement might be boring but quite doable and nicely pleasant in the greening of spring.

We had been up there once not too long after they moved up there. Following directions on the back of an envelope. Worked quite nicely that time.

Our intentions were to leave early Saturday morning. But it turned out to be after a trip to the post office, a stop by Costco to gas up - a bargain gas was $1.699 per gallon - and whiz by the clinic to pick up a prescription. Last but not least was a refueling just under the eleven o'clock wire for a croissantwich and coffee at Burger King.

So we left town early - well at least before dark anyhow.

The stretch between Denver and Greeley, dotted with small towns here and there along the way can be so awfully boring when all around is brown and down, drear, far and near. But to get from point A to point B, do not pass go, do not collect $200, but we did slide by without going directly to jail we went on our way.

I thought I knew Greeley pretty well as our oldest son went to University of Northern Colorado in the Sixties, but somehow it has grown and developments have dammed up streets. It is a city of numbered streets and numbered avenues, with west and norths in abundance.

Not having found the envelope with directions we proceeded to turn here because this looked familiar and go until the unfamiliarity indicated we had never been there. Turn around and look for something that we might have once seen, on another planet or life and go for it.

I have finally decided to never ask a man or woman in a town how to get to XXXXXX, because they apparently know how to get to the Seven-Eleven, Alberston's, shopping mall, filling station and the liquor store, but have no idea of the streets names or numbers.

We proceded to traverse city streets where the houses all looked familiar, and probably were as at one intersection I spotted a VUE with us in it. I told Heather, lets follow them, they look like they know where they are going." Heather grinned and said, "We are all poor sheep who have lost our way, bah, bah, bah." I was Whiffenpoofed !

Once in the nook of a cranny I spotted a mailman's truck. We stopped, finally I got out and took a quick look. Seeing no mailman standing at a door I asked a near by lady if she had seen the mailman belonging to the vehicle. She said, "Oh, he lives just next door." I wearily climbed a set of steps to the nose-bleed tier and rang the door bell. A kind woman answered the door and almost in tears I said, "Ma'am, we're lost." A sweet smile and she said, "I'll go get him right now." Soon this man came to the door and I told him my sad tale about numbered streets, avenues, norths and souths, easts and wests. He grinned and said something to the extent, "Yeah I was lost here for three years and finally went to work for the post office." Giving him the idea of the address we were seeking and the name of the foundation there, he said, "Okay, go down this street, cross the artery, keep straight until you have to turn, shortly after you turn -- there it is."

We only got lost twice trying to follow those simple directions until finally I saw the place, in our rear vision mirror. We backed up and parked just as the bus for the establishment pulled up. They had been to the shopping mall.

Heather and I had a nice visit with our daughter and some of the folks who were residents at Leyden House with her. Finally Heather said, "We should leave so we can get back before dark." Shortly thereafter we did do just that.

Thus began our odyssey. No matter which way we went we couldn't seem to find our way out of town. After a few sorties here and there, realizing we had been there and seen that a few times already I finally said. "Okay, it is late afternoon, the sun is predominatly west. I think we are on the far side of town. So, lets put the sun to our back and go east. Sooner or later we will run into highway 85 and go home.

This was accomplished in the long term by doing it in a zig-zag fashion. Heather turning south now and then apparently in hopes of getting closer to Denver that way, but having to go back to the street we had turned from because of dead ending streets.

After quite a time I saw the Highway 85 sign in an arc light at an intersection. Still remembering which direction south was we turned on the road home. By then we were both quite tired and out of sorts and quietly began the trek homeward. As we pulled into Brighton Heather said, "Hey, they have a K-Mart here and I need to stop." My remark was to the idea of, "Apparently I have no choice in the matter do I ?" Receiving a head shake indicating I didn't, I came up with this caveat, "Okay, step in and find out if they have a snack bar there and if not take me over to the McD's I can see over there. I'll have coffee there and work crosswords until you pick me up." Well of course they had taken the snack bar out of K's and McD's is where I drank coffee and worked my puzzles until Heather dropped in the seat of the booth and asked me, "Would you please go get me a strawberry shake ?" She looked to be in dire straits and in need of energy building, sweet sustenance so I hoisted my creaky tochus up and went and got her the needed shake.

By the time I finished my coffee she was done with the shake, we got up and headed out. Whup, I handed her my book and headed to the little boys room thus removing stress and tension for the trip back home.

As I made my entry last night it was impossible for me to go long without chuckling. Thinking about sighting ouselves at an intersection, both of us trying to find the way. I swear it was us I saw. So we had a good, long, long trip to the Land of Who - Where ? . . . . . . . . . . .

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