The Importance of an Address

On Friday, I took a very long field trip and did not return home until about 2 am. Normally, field trips run very smoothly and have very little if no hiccups. Occasionally we won't know the area, but on those occasions, a coach can give us either an address or very detailed directions. I have a personal GPS, so an address is very handy to have since all I have to do is plug it in, and hit "go".

This concept, however, was lost on the two coaches that I drove on Friday. I show up on time for the field trip and before we set out, I ask them for an address or directions and get told, "Oh we've been there before, I know where I'm going!" I'm thinking, "THIS is going to end well!"

We get to our midway point and about 10 miles prior to getting there, I inquire as to where the coaches would like to eat. One coach asks me, "There's a Subway there isn't there?" I check my GPS and confirm there is a Subway nearby, and then we have the following exchange:

Coach 1 (confidently) - The Subway is over by the Mc Donalds in that truck stop.

Me - I don't think so... the restaurant is on the other side of Burger King.

Coach 1 - No, I'm right, its by Mickey D's.

Me - I think it goes Mc D's, Truck Stop, BK, and then Subway.... all on the same side of the road.

Coach 1 - No, I'm right....

When we get there, guess who was right? Yep, me.

At the end of the stop, I again asked to see the directions. So, Coach 2 has his wife pull the papers out of the TRASH bag. So, directions in hand, we set out again. I finally get the name of the road we are supposed to be on and plug it into my GPS. I figure, if we get turned around, at least I can get us to the road and then we can search for the destination from there.

We finally exit off the highway and I ask which way to go, left or right. Noone seems to know, so I play it by ear, look at the map in my GPS and get us to the road in question. The coaches are freaking out because they think we are on the wrong road when in actuality, the road itself is the same, the name just changes through an intersection. They didn't seem to understand that and insisted I was wrong and had them on the wrong road. Remember, THEY had been there before and obviously, I was wrong. Their directions read, "As soon as you pass a fire station on the right, the destination will be the next road to the right." Sure enough, I pass a fire station and I point out the destination, and they deny it is because after all noone knows if this road is the correct road, even though my GPS says it is. So, we drive around to Timbuktu and finally end up right where we started where they made me go the wrong way.

I ended up turning around, getting back on the SAME road that I told them was the right road, and to the same place I told them was the destination. Of course I had to listen to the coaches gripe about ME making THEM late and how its all MY fault that I didn't know the destination. Right.

"Turn Right Ahead"

The Bus Driver