"The hubcaps are just to beautify the tires...like your beautiful face!"

We stared each other down in silence for a few seconds. My patience had evaporated at this point. After paying $800 to fix a car that was barely worth $2000, I was left gawking at the same hubcap-less burnt tire. I began to doubt if they’d really fixed the brakes. After our awkward silence, the red-faced burly mechanic agreed to replace my hubcap as soon as possible. At least this vehicle mishap occurred at the end of the week.

The last few days have been utter chaos here in the DC area. Kicking off with the Presidential Primaries earlier in the week thus began one of the most traffic dense moments in history. Roads were coated in black ice. People were procrastinating to get to the polls. Accidents had closed down the major highways. Like arteries, every backroad was clogged with cars.

Took me two hours to get home. Home was just five miles away. In hindsight, I should have walked.

At that moment, trapped amongst angry, frustrated drivers, a certain fear overcame me. Helpless, I was literally trapped. If Godzilla had appeared, I would have been one of those jumping out of their cars stuck in the middle of the highway, screaming, and running forward towards some unknown destination.

One of the clear benefits of living in the metro area is its reputation for being an international gateway and confluence of sorts. Just like New York, being able to hop on a direct flight to every single continent [save Oceania and Antarctica] is utterly priceless.

And it is weeks like this that make me want to hop one of those flights out, wander cobble-stoned streets, cycle around canals, and forget cars were ever invented.

___________

On an ironic note, The Away Network will be sending out my picture [insert] of a classic car buried in snow as part of their "Your Daily Escape" newsletter on Monday - http://away.com/travel_photo_gallery/photo-index.html. Sweet!