Prologue 1

I like to listen to audio-books. Many of the genres I enjoy – begin with a prologue.  If you skip the prologue and just jump into chapter 1, you lose some of the background of the story. Come Ride with Me is about my adventures and experiences as a Ride Share Driver (RSD). I’m neither a professional driver nor writer… so this may also be an adventure in writing and blogging.

Six months ago, I found myself displaced from my employer of nearly 44 years (43 years 10 months and 16 days to be exact). Having just turned 64, I knew the odds of finding a comparable job or starting a new career were not in my favor. My vocational time clock was ticking and though I was eligible to draw social security, my DH and I had done enough financial planning to determine we weren’t ready to pull that trigger yet. I needed to find a job where ‘age’ didn’t matter and though I had spent the previous 16,028 days at a desk, I was open to anything. I might mention I was also using a cane, as I was scheduled for total hip replacement in five weeks. What timing!

Our daughter had been Ride Sharing in her college town and suggested I give it a try. Are you kidding me? I’m directionally challenged and DH doesn’t even like to ride with me. I’m having hip replacement in 5 weeks.  “You have directions on a GPS…  No one will see your cane.... What do you have to lose? … What are your other options?” 

Perhaps I was destined to give rides. I come from a family where transportation was ‘business’. My parents owned and operated school buses. My Dad had a couple trucks and would contract with farmers to haul their corn. Maybe I was meant to carry on the family tradition or maybe I should have my head examined. Nope. No time for that. I need to fish or cut bait. I’m leaving my former life (MFL) behind and trading my office for an Aveo and my sorrows for an adventure. There will likely be additional prologues along the way (is that allowed?)  The past six months (and 640 rides to date) have shown me there is more than one way to get somewhere, so surely prologues can come in all shapes and sizes.

I must admit my driving skills have improved, which they were bound to driving 200 miles a day. DH will even ride with me now. I’ve pumped more gas since January than I have collectively in my 48 years of driving. If I were a Golden Girl, I’d be Rose Nylund, because I always have a story… and now I have a whole lot more. So “Come Ride with Me,” my friend. You never know where we might be going!