Numbers Game

90000

For those of you just joining me, see my first blog post, The Journey, for some background on the Blue Car.

As I scrolled down on my mobile phone to read the New York Times this morning, I gasped. There, clear as day, was an 8/18/23 article entitled “The Big Number: 90,000.”

Was my quirky little obsession public knowledge already? How did they know? Would people laugh at me? Think me crazy? A bit obsessive compulsive perhaps?

It turns out the article is about the IRS’ recent cash infusion and hiring spree, bringing its staff levels up to almost 90,000 people. Dull stuff. Silly me. I thought they were talking about miles. As in miles driven. As in odometer readings. Think I have road trip on my mind?

It all started a week ago while driving my daughter to college orientation. My daily car, my trusty Subaru, is with my son at the moment so we took the Blue Car. It seemed a good idea to do a little test run before the big day and what could be cooler for Jane than showing up at college in this car, right?

As the windshield wipers beat their rhythmic drum in the pouring rain and we passed water-logged fields in upstate New York, I glanced down to see the odometer was at 89462 miles. At some point on my road trip this fall, this odometer—the old analog kind that only goes up to 99999—will rollover for the second time in the 53-year life of the Blue Car. But a week ago, on the road in upstate New York, I also realized I was facing the near-immediate milestone of 90000 miles…not quite 00000, but a nice round number nonetheless. I normally don’t think much about these kinds of things but I glanced at Jane and mentioned how elegant and simple it would be to start my journey with a clean number with lots of zeros on the odometer as I pull out of our driveway on September 1st. 

Quick research revealed that there were approximately 450 miles between our point on that rainy road and our home in Massachusetts, including all the stops I expected to make after dropping her off. That would leave me with an “allowance” of approximately 88 miles if I wanted to begin my road trip with an exact odometer reading of 90000. In that moment, I decided it was silly enough, and ridiculous enough, to go for it.

The calculations and scheming began and it all seems like a variation on those school math tests. If Susie drives 250 miles to her friend’s house and then goes to the store 10 miles away, and then stops to get the car inspected and detailed 5 miles west of the store after taking a half mile detour for road work and a latte, how many miles has Susie driven? Ignore the swerves around the potholes for the purposes of this exam.

Those 88 miles average to just 5.9 miles per day.  This may not seem like enough but I live in the middle of an urban area well-served by two streetcar lines and an extensive bus network. I walk to most places including the grocery store, the post office, and even the local cinema. I could pull my bike from the basement if need be. I now know the distance around my block (1/3 of a mile), how far away my mechanic is in case (horrors!) I need to see him before I leave (16 miles), and what a trip to the local mall might entail (3.7 miles). There may be emergencies or unexpected errands though, so I am colluding with others in this hairbrained scheme…neighbors and friends, my son who has my Subaru, and Zip Car too.

Last Friday morning I had a meeting about 8 miles roundtrip from home and I didn’t want to start blowing through those 88 miles so early in my 15 remaining days…that just seemed too risky. I did the only rational thing for an intelligent and sane person…I booked a Zip Car to get to that meeting since public transportation wasn’t an option. Reasonable to spend $42 for a car rental when the Blue Car is sitting here ready to go? I thought so. I looked at my errand list and packed in three other stops during my four-hour rental just for good measure.

It seemed I needed a clear strategy after that experience.  Zip Car could get expensive and I was feeling a bit silly. I got home and made my master errand list by grouping places I could walk or take the train, and sorted the rest by location, store opening hours, etc.  I made a plan.

I called my son.  He came on Saturday with my Subaru and I took it for the big errands.  I drove 51 miles using that car while the Blue Car didn’t move from its spot behind my building. Odometer reading as of today: still at 89912.  I am proud of myself.  I feel confident I can do this and my support team is strong; my neighbor and friend Marsha is all in for this scheme.  She thinks it’s funny and fantastic. Yesterday, while we were talking at the dog park she said, “Let me know if you need me to drive you anywhere.  Anywhere at all. This is fun. Glad to help out.”

As I reflect on this game and how it’s making me laugh, it’s clear to me this isn’t all silliness. In the past, on any given day, I could never have told you what the odometer read. Why the obsession with 90000 now? That nice round number represents the decisions I have made and the preparations completed to get to this point–to get to next Friday morning and the milestone of beginning my road trip. It’s not a clean slate but a marking of many miles traveled and a shift in my life. It’s an elegant and simple way to mark the complex decisions and work needed to step away from my day-to-day role as the head of an urban planning firm, to mark my transition to empty nester, and to acknowledge my commitment to a time of reflection and an exploration of new goals. So much better to acknowledge this milestone with 90000 rather than 89912.  

The trip, however, is still more than a week away and I have a new challenge to meet. It occurs to me that I may manage these 88 miles so well that I will need to take a little joy ride in the car to get it to 90000. I will have to work that into my schedule right before I leave. Then there is the problem of what to do if I am three blocks from home and the mileage is about to turn to 90000. I have heard driving in reverse doesn’t register on older analog odometers.

Not that I would ever resort to that.

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