Today, I drove to Bismarck. I was invited to speak at the Unitarian Universalist church there. I was supposed to speak there in February, but the weather scared me that weekend, and I chickened out. Today was the make-up date.
So I got up at an ungodly hour to begin my trek. Because I always overestimate the time I need to get anywhere, I was very, very early. That was okay, though. I always like to get familiar with a space in which I’m speaking. I like to be able to visualize speaking in a place before I do it. So I spent some time just being in the church, and some more time visiting with a number of people I had communicated with over e-mail but never met in person.
The talk went well. I enjoy speaking in situations outside the classroom because it frees me from the constraints of a curriculum. I still enjoy teaching, but I’m more constrained in that environment, and the audience is less likely to want to be there, since they have purposes besides learning.
Despite speaking to a group I had never met, I think the car ride made me more nervous. I haven’t taken a long car trip by myself in some time. I think the last one was my first year here when I drove back to Ohio. Ronni and I have driven to the Twin Cities and to Winnipeg, but then Ronni was with me. Today was just me and my iPod.
I enjoy driving. It gives me some time by myself to just think. Not that I don’t get that at other times, but there is something different about being in a car. There is little to distract oneself. And it’s not as though you can just get up and go do something else. (At least, I would advise against it.) I’m not thinking of starting a career as a truck driver, but I had almost forgotten the simple pleasure of driving. Today was nice for that.
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