I haven’t been to Athens, Georgia in quite some time. On that visit, it was for an event celebrating the local Terrapin brewery three years ago. Terrapin is a happening place on this town’s Newton Bridge Road in which Athens has been proud of for quite some time. On this recent visit, I took my daughter to a gymnastics competition. I typically take Caitlin to many of these competitions, gymnastics practices, doctor appointments etc., etc. I'm looking forward to her becoming even more involved in the community since she is becoming involved with the Norcross High JV Cheerleading squad. I honestly confess that I’m proud to do it all.
Athens can be quite confusing. After many miles of driving and enjoying Georgia State Route 316 -- also known as University Parkway -- something funny happened on the way to Athens. A sign proclaims that if one would like to drive to the University of Georgia, split off to the right on get on the State Route Georgia 10 Loop. I believe I fell into this trap three years ago. Also known as the “Paul Broun Loop,” the route takes the driver – also known as ‘victim’—well out of the way and one approaches the downtown area of Athens from different direction that previously thought. I was honestly following someone’s directions to follow Georgia State Route 10 to the north. At that moment, it came back to me that Athens is a little maze. And it was at that moment that I wished to cease driving or at least cease driving and attempting to follow directions. This is exactly why I learned to be a responsible adult and leave early just in case I got caught in the Athens Triangle.
My daughter, armed with Google Maps, quickly got me right on track. It was a relief to get to the competition right on time! Well, Dad always said to “give yourself cushion time” and that sage advice worked. Indeed, I should have borrowed my girlfriend Camellia's Garmin GPS directional device which seems to work well for her all the time.
Find out what's happening in Peachtree Cornerswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
This past weekend’s gymnastics competition was fantastic. It was held in a packed gym located in a local park. Caitlin posted her scores as: Vault- (8th Place 11+ A); Bars- 8.85; Beam- 8.8 (2nd Place 11+ B);
Floor- (7th Place 11+ A).
Leaving Athens was not nearly as difficult as arriving in this Georgia university town. University Parkway seemed even more pleasant as Athens was in my rearview mirror. I wish I had time to check out nearby Watkinsville and Bethlehem. There is one thing that I learned from the driving experience: next time, I’m visiting with the Garmin.