But tonight was different. Everything worked the same as always, until I noticed a little car icon by the "Get Directions" button. There was a mysterious drop-down list I had never seen before. The default option was, of course, "by car". But just below it was another option: Walking. Not train or plane or any other form of motorized transportation. Walking.From Camp in Idaho to my new place in SoCal:
2 feet
408 instructions
1392 miles
19 days & 4 hours (I'm not sure how this is calculated. Sleep?)
Google's Walking Directions are still in beta, and I'm not planning a walk-a-thon. But, there was something awesome about measuring space and time differently.
This time in my life is new and different from everything that has come before, and a lot of the promise of the future is threatened by fear of being given a grown-up, tax-paying label and placed in a box.
It's good to remember that beauty and joy in life have a lot to do with perspective. It's good to remember who we are in addition to, apart from, in spite of the perceptions of society. It's good to remember that our feet can do more than just hit the brake or tap the gas.
Maybe that line of thought is a bit of a stretch. Measuring miles with just 2 feet. Differentiating our ideas and ourselves from what is expected. Remembering the source of our meaning and the purpose of our journey. All from Google Maps.
Maybe Google providing Walking Directions is even more of a stretch.
Maybe we'll try them out sometime anyway.
Same road. Different method. Big deal. Then again...
6 comments:
I miss you.
I second Nick's comment.
And also, I will be using that walking measurer...maybe all the time.
Good thoughts, Sarah. It was so wonderful to see you in Chicago and I am so glad to have you as a friend and conversation partner for this journey we're on... whether we walk or not.
lol. those walking directions are very helpful when you live in a city... i use them often. :)
Wish i could walk with you or to you.
Back in the days when I was dreaming of golf-carting across the country, I checked out the walking directions. Pretty sweet.
I wonder where you are in the country right now. I wish you were going closer to me rather than farther away.
I know I'm late to comment, but I didn't know there were walking directions! Awesome. You've graduated, and I graduate soon. I'm stoked about the newness of it all, and I haven't even got there yet.
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