It's like some sort of parallel universe!

Normally I'm one of those people who's really good at directions. I'm kinda a visual thinker and so it's easy for me to sorta draw a map of wherever I am in my head and think logically about where I need to go. I've always been one of those people who can go to a new city and find my way around fairly quickly. Normally when I'm lost, people who are with me don't even realize I'm lost because I can get back to where I need so quickly.

I think there's probably a few reasons this works for me. First off is the one I mentioned above...being a visual thinker. Also, growing up, my dad got lost a lot when we would go on vacations. Well, to be fair, we just referred to it in my family as "taking the scenic route," but same concept. Getting used to watching us drive through random streets in attempt to get back to where we need I guess wore off on me. Also, if it's somewhere I've ever been before I'm almost guaranteed to find my way. Along with my visual thinking, I have a very good memory. Like if I see a building or intersection once, I'm probably going to recognize it again for the rest of my life (crazy, I know). Also, I'm one of those people who, if I get any amount of time in a city, I just drive around the streets checking them out and learning where they go. I get familiarized with cities really quickly!

That brings me to the title of this post, however. Charlotte must exist in some sort of parallel universe! There's some sort of Kryptonite or something around that city that renders my super powers useless! I don't know what it is about that city but every time I go there I just get lost! What makes it even crazier is when I've asked for directions in the past, the people who live there can't even give me the right directions to major places! For instance, when I was up in the city last May, I just wanted to find the South Park Mall. I think everyone pretty much knows that place and where it is, but yet, I couldn't get there. I ended up driving for about an hour or so once I got in the city trying to find it. I stopped and asked directions at least 3 different times before I got there! The directions that finally got me there were from a 15 year old girl (the previous person's directions led me up a dead end road that ended in her high school parking lot, so I just asked someone there, haha). What's the most frustrating is that I'm usually no more than 5 miles from where I need to go, but just can't manage to get there. I drive in circles for half an hour or an hour at a time!

Even last time I was up there a week ago, I couldn't get anywhere. After my seminar was over I wanted to go to a couple of places around town, including the same mall. Even though I knew full well where the mall was, I couldn't figure out where I was! I basically again, drove in circles for about an hour or an hour and a half just trying to get there! Then, after leaving the mall, I decided to back uptown to hang out for a bit. I had just been uptown and knew exactly where I wanted to go. I was excited because, for probably the first time, I could get where I wanted without getting lost. Or so I thought! There was some sort of big high school football game going on up there which caused the road I wanted to be on to be closed. I drove around trying to find another street running parallel to it or one I could use to intersect my road later...but alas, nothing. Again, I spent another 30 mins. literally driving in circles in what was about a 10 block radius of where I wanted to go! (well, except for the time I ended up on some random freeway that I couldn't get off of for about 2 or 3 miles).

Ugh! Oh well, point is, I did eventually make it home, just probably drove an extra 50-100 miles and used half a tank of gas. I get so annoyed and frustrated every time I go up there because that is the one city I just can't make it in!! Pretty town...horrible roads! :)