I get asked for directions all the time. As a city dweller and avid walker, I must look like I know where I'm going. I always try to help and most of the time I'm right, but some of the time I'm wrong. Like yesterday.
We were at Dupont Circle on New Hampshire Ave. and the woman wanted to know how to get to National Geographic which I KNOW is at 17th and M. When we got to that really confusing intersection where 18th and New Hampshire and Q all come together, I mistakenly told the woman to keep going straight on New Hampshire to 17th when I should have told her to take Q to 17th. She went on her merry way and 5 minutes later I realized my mistake.
The biggest problem with being so familiar with the city is that when I've given bad directions I usually figure it out at some point. And then I feel horrible that I led some perfectly clueless strangers, who trusted me completely, off in the wrong direction. It sort of haunts me. The interaction with the woman happened around 12:30 pm and I literally stewed about it for the rest of the day. She put her fate in my hands and I let her down.
Fast forward to 8:00 pm as I was emerging from the metro on my way home and another unsuspecting stranger asked how to get to 15th and L. Well I gave her the most perfect and accurate directions ever given.
I don't exactly know how karma works, but hopefully it evened everything out.
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