Drivng and Conquering Fears

I don't remember if I've ever shared this photo.  It's a photo of my daughter at the Santa Monica Pier in LA.  It's one of my favorite picture, not of just my daughter but as a whole.  When I took the picture I primarily was focusing on my daughter then later realized that I had taken a photo of the whole pier in the background much to my delight!

The photo was taken during the summer.  I haven't been back to Santa Monica Pier since summer because it's been too cold to ride our bikes there.  The purpose of going to the pier was to ride our bikes from the pier to Venice Beach.  There is a very nice bike path that leads to Venice Beach which is about 2 miles or so away.

If you ever visit LA, it's something you might want to consider doing.  Although we bring our own bikes, they do rent bicycles there.  I love Venice Beach. . .just to people watch.  It's one of the most interesting places to just hang out and watch the strangest of all people.  LOL!  It's a very interesting place.  They have lots of restaurants, street entertainment, quirky shops, and of course, the people that hang out there. 

I've been living in California for approximately 8 years and for the past 7 years, I was a little fearful of driving outside of my town by myself.  I would do it on occasion but more out of necessity.  I think it's because I was really never the driver whenever we drove to LA or San Diego.  After my husband passed away last year, if I want to drive anywhere outside of my town, I now have to do it my self.  

You see, I'm originally from Hawaii where the speed limit is 55 mph on the freeway.  The traffic is rather mild compared to California, especially the Orange County and LA area.  The driving experience in California is very unique in that drivers are rather impatient and they drive really fast.  They're also not very nice.  Although the speed limit on the freeway is 65 to 70 mph, no one really drives at that speed.  More commonly, people drive at around 75 to 85 mph which quite honestly, freaked me out.  I was not accustomed to driving at that speed.

But knowing I had to drive my self if I wanted to do anything outside of my little town (well, not so little . . I live in a fairly large town) I began driving to LA and San Diego which are both about an hour or so away from where I live.  After several trips, it became a lot easier and less nerve-wracking to the point that I no longer have any anxiety driving anywhere.  It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  

Luckily my desire for adventure was stronger that my fear of driving or I would have been stuck in this little town I live in.  I now want to drive to Orange County, LA and San Diego all the time because there are so many fun things to do there.   I learned a lot from this experience.  Sometimes our fear are conjured up by our own imagination, that in reality it's not at all what we imagine it to be.  If we don't take the risk, even if only once, we'll never know what wonderful experiences we could be having.  

Anyway, I think I'm going to create a few cards today.  I want to drive out somewhere today but unfortunately, with the price of gas the way it is, I have to stay put.  It's very frustrating.  Well, I hope you all have a wonderful Saturday.  Until next time!!

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