May the road rise up to meet you

Somehow, I don’t think this is what the Irish had in mind when they composed that blessing, but still, as I was sitting there stuck in traffic, it’s exactly the poem that came to my mind. I can’t believe I’ve been living here five years and this is the first time I’ve seen Montlake bridge coming up (I drive this stretch of road twice a month. Well, four times — twice going, twice coming back.). It was an awesome sight, and totally worth sitting in traffic for — in fact, I slowed down as I got closer to the bridge, wishing I would get stopped again at a better vantage point. To see the two halves rising majestically, and not just a little bit, but straight up (I half hoped that it would topple over backwards and squish a car, but no, it just stopped).

If I had a favorite traffic jam, this would be it, because it’s so justifiable, so legitimate. So often, I’m stuck crawling in a traffic jam that just disappears suddenly, leaving you to wonder what the hell was so good about the last two miles that made everyone want to go two-miles-an-hour. But not Montlake Blvd. Why are we all stopped here? Look ahead! Bridge is up!