Over the weekend Charlotte came to the mind-blowing realization that every street has its own name. And the last two trips in the car have not been the same since. For over a year now she has known River Road by name because, well, it's pretty damn distinctive. It runs along the Mississippi River, is dotted with runners, bikers, and has bridges and a train trestle. She also knows the Lake Street Bridge, the Ford Bridge, and the Franklin Avenue Bridge by name.
But then yesterday (Saturday), as part of some random conversation with her, I told her we were on 42nd street and would take a left on Nicollet. And at that moment she put two and two together and you could almost hear the wheels churning in her head as if to tell her "Wait a second, River Road isn't the ONLY road with a name. Holy %#^@%$!! They all have names!!!!!"
Ooops. I unleashed a monster.
Charlotte now knows each road has a new name just like each person has a name she wants to learn. Now every time I make a turn she asks, "What street is this one called?" And God love and her sincerity, she truly wants to know. Unfortunately in Longfellow, as almost everyone reading this knows, the streets (going east to west) are all in the high 20s to mid 40s and the avenues (north-south) share the same range. So really my answers are typically pretty boring and just a lesson in random numbers between 25 and 46. But she carries on and asks with each turn.
Or she will just ask, "Is this 46th Avenue?" I do not know why 46th Avenue is her favorite. It is a main Longfellow thoroughfare but otherwise fairly unremarkable... unless you're Charlotte.
No comments:
Post a Comment