I'm not lost, I'm directionally challenged

By Staff
Melissa Cason, Franklin County Times
In this world, there are a lot of people who are directionally challenged, and I have to admit that I am one of those who need a map, or at least good directions, to find anything, anywhere.
Many of you know this to be true because when I contacted you about doing a story, I would ask for directions if I had never been there before. Some of you know that I have had to call you back from my cell phone in my car to get additional directions depending of the complexity of the destination.
With all that said, I have a funny story that I would like to share with you about me getting lost.
Last weekend, I had the bright idea that I would go eat with my husband, who was off working in West Point, Miss. The trip to West Point is supposed to take an hour and a half from my house.
I figured I'd go to West Point eat with him, and come home. I was a simple plan. I mean West Point is only 86 miles from my house.
My son, Cameron, and I set out to see his dad at 4:30 p.m.
I wasn't really sure which road to take to get to our destination, so I decided to follow towns. An hour later we came into Sulligent headed west, and we came to an intersection.
At this intersection, I remembered that Jimmy had said something about a Hamilton, Miss. when I talked to him earlier in the week so I decided that I must need to turn right to Hamilton. I did not realize at the time that the sign was pointing to Hamilton, Ala. So, I turned right and started driving. Everything was going smoothly until I found myself in Hamilton, Ala not Mississippi. I had gone in a complete circle.
I was really upset at that point but I was determined to eat dinner with my husband so I turned around.
When I came back to that same intersection, there was a sign pointing to Columbus, Miss. I decided that I must need to go in that direction but would need to turn off from this road at some point.
So I went through Vernon, and then on toward Columbus.
Forty-five minutes later Jimmy calls me and asks where I was. I told him that I was on Highway 18, and that I had just crossed into Mississippi. It was at that point that he informed me that he had no clue as to where I was. We decided that I was lost, and I decided that I was all his fought for taking the map. I hung up on him, and pulled over at the first gas station I could find.
Cameron and I walked in as they were getting ready to close, and I found out that I was in North Columbus and about 45 minutes from my destination.
The handsome owner-yes he was good looking-gave me directions, and a little less than an hour later I came into West Point, Miss.
I had driven for three and a half hours and went almost 200 miles getting there.
Cameron and I stayed the night, and returned home the next day with the map. I didn't have any trouble finding my way home, because I had the map. My trip home took an hour and a half.
It turns out that I took both wrong turns when I came to the intersection in Sulligent, and I was angry to find that I came into Sulligent less than an hour after leaving West Point.
I have since purchased my own my map for my own car.