stuck.

It's five o'clock. Creep-n-beep across the bridge and inching slowly down to the mouth of the tunnel. Suddenly, all the caution lights start blinking amber and a man in a fluorescent yellow suit carrying a blaze orange caution flag walks into traffic, halting the westbound flow.

I'm only two cars from a clear shot home. Bugger.

I sit there, tapping my foot restlessly on my brake pedal. Minutes pass and the only movement is an orange tow truck, light rack blinking merrily as it descends, both lanes of the tunnel all to itself.

5:09.

I'm trapped here, I say to myself. No chocolate. No yarn. No … no Diet Coke. No Uncle Traveling Sock. How could I be so woefully unprepared for this? Yeah, I have music in the car, but even that will run out….

5:25.

A second VDoT truck enters the tunnel. By now, I've shifted the Cruiser into park and am nervously tapping both feet. I don't like idle hands. I don't like being trapped with extra time on my hands and the knowledge that three pairs of socks need attention, even though they're thirty miles away from me.

I really need that Diet Coke.

No, check that. If this line doesn't start moving soon, I'm really gonna need a bathroom. I flip the radio on and tune to the traffic report channel. They slowly make their way through the list of accidents, backups, incidents, construction, bridge lifts, and hey, according to them, there's nothing wrong at MY tunnel.

I look up, annoyed, ready to call the traffic hotline, when the fluorescent yellow man walks back to his building and the lights turn back to green. It's 5:32.

Comments

[Carly]

OMG, just the other night when we were coming down 264 and it was backed up so we jumped off waterside to go thru the midtown, I commented to Jake 'Can you imagine if you are stuck at that point where you can't get off an exit anymore?'. YUK! I would rather drive 50 miles around and out of my way if I'm moving the whole time rather than sit for 30 minutes! This is why, if I ever decide to leave my work at home, I would only look on my side of the tunnel!

[Magatha]

I don't actually experience your pain now, but last decade when I lived and worked in Southern California, I learned the meaning of traffic pain, in triplicate. My particular fear was being stuck underneath an underpass while at a dead stop. I would not pull forward until I could see a clear sky space on the other side. (Earthquakes. Reference what happened to the people in San Francisco on a double decker bridge in 1989.)
Be a good girl scout and load that car with little things. Be prepared.

[Kristen]

Ah, I have been there before... stuck in traffic and yarnless. It's a sad place to be. :/

[Anniebananie]

So, there was nothing wrong, eh? Are you insinuating that they knew you were coming and decided to close the tunnel for 1/2 hour just to annoy you?

At least it wasn't an hour... or 12 (remember the "jumper" on the Wilson bridge about 10 years ago? Closed the entire beltway down for 12 stinkin hours. I'm still amazed that no one walked up to him and pushed him off, just to get traffic moving).

[Cindy in Happy Valley]

We don't have "traffic", or bridges, or tunnels. Well...maybe 6 fall weekends a year.....Thank goodness. We have a "rush minute". I am spoiled rotten...

[Zonda]

Yuk!!! That's why I always leave a bit of knitting in the car or try to..the other day I didn't and was a bit miffed at myself.

[Stephie]

That's no fun at all. I hate getting stuck in traffic near the tunnel; I'm too claustrophobic for all that.

Feel free to post SPS as much as you want. Who doesn't love a good yarn picture?

[Ted]

Did you ever make it home? Guess not...It appears as though you are still stuck in traffic, and unable to update your blog! Hopefully there is some food stuck in the seats of the Cruiser to subsist off of until traffic clears...

Lil Bro