Traffic
They say the universe is expanding. That should help with the traffic. ……….Steven Wright
I originally wrote this blog 4 months ago after having to deal with traffic for the whole month of this last January. I was about to publish it when the virus hit and poof, there were no longer too many cars on the street to complain about, so I held it back.
However, after being quarantined at home for the last month and with another month at least to look forward to, I thought it interesting to post now and ask the question; do you really want traffic back?
And that leads to the overall question; what do you want the future to look like?
I believe the number one ingredient in magic is intention and that when you fuel imagination with intention, you get consciousness.
So what’s it to be? What do you imagine the world to look like as we open our doors and start to live our lives again out in the open.
How do you want to live in world?
You get a vote. You have a voice.
Traffic
I rarely drive anymore. When I’m not hosting a retreat, I work out of my house. And, when I do have to go out, I plan it strategically so that I don’t run into traffic. When I need groceries, I go to Trader Joe’s first thing in the morning and avoid 9am rush hour. After lunch, when traffic flow is similarly relaxed, I’ll scoot to the gym and swim.
This January, however, I spent three consecutive weeks driving from Studio City to Whittier and back to see my brother. There is no easy way of getting there. The 101 south to the 5 south is the most direct route with some shortcuts, but it’s at least an hour there and two coming back. I spent a lot of time in the car where I realized something: if I had to commute like this every day, it would kill me…or I would end up killing someone (just kidding).
Sitting in the same position for hours primarily using the right side of my body threw me off balance. On top of that, I was stuck in 3000 tons of steel and metal. Confined and contained with no fresh air or movement was not good for my body, mind, or soul.
For me, knowing how long a drive will take helps to rid my vehicle anxiety. I can sit back and plan that time to my benefit. Because no matter how much I stress, it will take the same amount of time to get there. I can listen to an audio book like Michelle Obamas autobiography (boy do I wish she would run). I can listen to any music I want, talk on the phone, sing at the top of my lungs, or talk to myself. My car is an inner sanctum where no one can see or hear me. I can be whoever I want to be.
Luckily, for my fellow road warriors, I am a safe driver who refuses to tailgate especially in bumper-to-bumper traffic on a freeway. Weirdly, during this time of intense driving, I found myself face-to-face with a variety of bad and stressed out drivers. One women in particular was my favorite. She was an angry women who was late to work and, clearly, not happy in her own life. How do I know all that about a stranger?
Well…
I was in the fast lane on the 101 South between Echo Park and Downtown where the road is a bottleneck 24 hours a day. I was in the fast lane of three lanes and I left two car lengths in front of me. The car behind me was also leaving space. Quite a few cars cut in front of me and would speed on, but I stayed two cars back. Then then came a woman who pulled in behind me sitting on my tail. I slowed down to signal her to get back, but she wouldn’t have it. She came even more aggressively upon me such that I could see fumes steaming up the windows as she was getting angrier.
As soon as she could, she changed into the middle lane and came upon the passenger side of my car. Now, remember, we are in morning bumper-to-bumper traffic where the only space on the freeway for miles are the two car lengths in front of me. We both rolled down our windows and I speak calmly and sincerely, “Listen it’s a tailgating thing with me, I’m a little nervous someone is going to run into me.”
She forcefully tossed her words through her window “ If you are going to drive like a turtle, get the f**k out of the fast lane, move over!!!!"
Her reaction stunned me. All of that angry pent-up energy that she was feeling landed in my lap! My torso, legs and hips were all on fire and vibrating. It was powerful. I started to sing and move as much as I could in the car realizing it was energy with which my body had been bombarded. So I moved it around. Driving is a dangerous business. Between my body being beaten up by the container of the car, the laborious drive and the words of an angry driver, I was exhausted by the time I got to the hospital. I can’t imagine going through that everyday. Its crazy that so many of us put ourselves through that.
My advice is that, if you have to drive, put healing rituals in place to combat the effects. When you reach your destination, go off and do a 10 minute yoga routine, meditate, or walk outside in nature. I would suggest that you drink plenty of water because steel and metal can dry you out. You can also challenge yourself to go a day without driving. That would help with your body, mind, soul, and the environment. Do something that will counteract what you just went through so you can make it through the day.
