When my family moved to Mount Sinai five years ago, I truly believed we were moving to the country. We would drive on the LIE to Exit 63 and head north on North Ocean Ave. Towards the end this road has no street lights for miles. With endless pine trees and not a 7-11 in sight, I felt I had found the promised land of Long Island. This is it, nothing but blissful green acres and lush rolling hills!
Until one day when I decided to take 347 and head to the Smith Haven Mall at four in the afternoon. Anyone who lives in the area knows that my dreams were crushed by the realization that there would be a 2 minute light every ½ mile. Stop and go traffic, fender benders, and frustrated drivers are a normal everyday occurrence on 347. Paradise Lost.
I am no stranger to dealing with stop and go traffic and I have learned to make the best of it. In the ‘80’s while driving to work with my roommate Teresa, I perfected the art of putting on mascara, eyeliner and lipstick while Teresa perfected the art of speeding to every stop sign and coming to a sudden stop. Teresa drove a manual shift.
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I do try to make the most of every red-light and use those two minutes wisely. I put lipstick on, check my need for Botox and keep wipes in my car so I can dust the dashboard. I have even been known to clean out my pocket book and organize my receipts while driving home from the mall. Two minutes is a long time!
Recently I found a new way of dealing with the traffic. I purchased a car freshener, lavender – vanilla. I tune into the Spa channel on Sirius Radio and listen to raindrops falling on ferns in a rainforest. I hear tribal music and I feel like I am in South America surrounded by joyful natives. The sound of the wood instruments and reeds takes me to a spa somewhere in the Pacific even though the warm wind blowing my hair is really my heat blowing thru my vent.
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I indulge myself in this mini spa treatment and when I get cut-off, I am very forgiving and relaxed. It’s OK! It’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey, right? When that green light turns yellow, instead of speeding thru it I slowly come to a pause and breathe… deep cleansing breaths. Two minutes to let the lavender-vanilla scent take me to the rolling hills of France.
Now if only I could get eucalyptus steam to blow through those vents and car seats with a built in massager….
