March 22, 2011
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The Daily News1 I have taken to driving an alternate route home lately.2 Normally I'm superstitious about changing routes.
3 But I have decided that taking a few back roads through the hills of San Jose is a small way to change the scenery in my life.
4 We're all in such a hurry all the time that we tend to want to get places the fastest way possible.
5 I certainly fell into that.
6 We miss out on so much of life that way.
7 So a few weeks ago I decided to figure out ways to avoid the main roads on my daily routine.
8 It has worked out famously.
9 Most people could probably do this as well.
10 What I did was I found alternate routes to work.
11 Since I work in the East Hills of Sannozay, I found some quaint streets and neighborhoods that I never knew existed. Or maybe I did, but because we are all in such a hurry all the time, we don't take the time to look around the places through which we travel each day.
12 I found that instead of riding in traffic, I can now ride through small neighborhoods all by myself, no traffic, no stresses, and lots of small houses with families and kids and all.
13 What's really great is when I have to travel back to some sort of traffic, I land at this Starbuck's that's a simple right turn and a stop.
14 If I need to get coffee, it's right there. And there are other hidden stores that nobody knows about.
15 And cheap gas stations. They are never cheap near freeway entrances, but if you go off the beaten path for say a mile, they go lower, almost thirty cents a gallon.
16 I love this time of the year. It's Spring. Don't let the rain fool you. And I absolutely think each year that everything looks prettier, and that the hills turn green and the sky filled with cumulus clouds and blue sky.
17 Changing my driving habits has been a subtle addition to this exquisitely underrated time of the year.
18 Everything seems fresh and clean and colorful. Birds are still singing and chirping. I whistled to a few last night, and they whistled back.
19 Yes, you can't really barbecue or garden, or take baseball seriously. Yes, we are in a sort of waiting line for summer.20 But it's a gorgeous time of year, a time of reflection and rebirth.
21 And making a small change, like adding five minutes to a commute and getting away from the traffic moves from being a small change to being a large change.
22 You should try it. At first I got sort of lost, but after a few tries, I felt my way around the neighborhoods and now travel through an entirely different world.
23 And what's amazing about it is that it isn't anything big.
24 Sometimes it's the little things.
25 I probably shouldn't be telling you about what you should do, because people who do that sometimes annoy me.
26 <But you really should give it a try.> ; ) <---------sideways winky guy.
27 That's it for today.
28 Clouds. Blue sky. Lush hills.
29 I need sleep.
30 For what it's worth, have an elegant Tuesday.
31 Love what's real.
32 Peace.
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