Silly Google Maps...

...I was going to our yearly afternoon tea to meet my friends. It was a new garden centre and cafe that had opened up.

I didn’t know the last few of miles of the journey. And there were road closures and detours. So I needed Google Maps on my phone.

Pretty quickly there was something oddly wrong with Google Maps. But because I am deaf I cannot follow the verbal instructions, and I try to get by on visual. But I do have an idea now when it says ‘right’ and when it says ‘left’. I have been practicing listening to it. (The words in between I do not have any clue of) But today it appeared to be saying ‘right’ when it meant left, and ‘left’ when it meant right.

Anyway the visual blue line showed left at these traffic lights, but that was the road closure and it has been so for some time, but the speaker seemed to be saying right. I was stopped at the lights in the right lane because of this. I listened hard again and I was sure it said right. It was repeating its verbal instructions like a stuck record. And strangely the blue directional arrow was spinning round frantically in circles one way and then the other. And the blue line was telling me to go through the traffic cones.

Without the phone google instructions I would possibly have gone straight ahead (just gut feeling). I couldn’t go straight ahead now when the lights changed because I was now in the wrong lane, so I turned right.

The google maps seemed to be having a hissy fit when I did this. So I stopped when it was safe to do so. Normally if I take a wrong direction it simply recalibrates and decides on a revised route.

It was very hot and I really was feeling the heat. I drank a bottle of water. The little blue arrow was facing the wrong direction. It showed me the revised route but the arrow was backwards. Then it started turning round and round on the spot. The blue arrow was spinning on the spot. My car is still, not moving, because I am still parked.

I ignored the google maps, found a safe place to turn round (I never do U turns ‘cos I have seen too many accidents when people do so).
I decided to go back a bit, turn right through the housing estate, and to the main road and turn right on to that. I decided that would probably take me to the tea place ( I needed Google Maps to show me where it was, it’s not on a paper map).

Google Maps on my iPhone went doolally, the blue arrow was spinning round and round. Normally it just recalibrates. It was barking out ‘left’ then ‘right’ alternately with other instructions in between. Google Maps couldnt stop barking out instructions like a stuck record or an army major... (but I have no idea what it is saying) I stopped the car. I am on a side road in the housing estate.

I drink some more water. I hold the phone and look at it. The voice appears to be telling me to turn right now and so does the blue line. But I cannot hear the rest of the words. However, I look to my right where there is a children’s playground, and then a recreation park beyond, but no sign of any road...

The day is too hot to be experiencing a badly malfunctioning google maps. It confused me greatly.

I shut the phone down and put it in my bag. Finished my bottle of water. Meditated a few minutes. Fully gathered-ish I drive to the main road, turn right, drive about a mile, and found my location on the left.

I have never experienced anything like this on Google Maps before. With the voice saying right, yet the blue line showing left (but I couldn’t drive there because the road was closed with those road cones across it), this really confused my brain, because I am getting 3 conflicting pieces of information to the brain at this point....

I have totally lost my confidence with Google Maps now.

It is going to be a long time before I turn on Google Maps for any instructions again. Maybe it was suffering from heatstroke???


The afternoon tea was good. Plenty of savoury sandwiches. There are always too many cakes for me. As many refills (that is freshly brewed pots of tea) we wanted. And then the price was only £8 each!!

I was surprised because many afternoon teas are £15 each person, going up to £25+ per person and that one is in the pet cemetery....someone showed us pics of that afternoon tea and they didn’t get free pots of tea , but they weren’t told until the bill came when they found this hugely inflated bill for their afternoon teas...they did make a fuss and argued it, but it left a bad taste...

I do find it impossible with my deafness following conversations. I usually give up...and just eat...

Anyway the actual afternoon tea food was good today. Plenty of savoury sandwiches. That suits me.

Got home totally, absolutely, drop-dead exhausted. Slept a couple hours. Then I thought painting...but too tired. Then I remembered some acrylic painting card that wasn’t as good as it should have been for acrylics and I had painted it black as a background. Got that out.

Found Ryan O’Rourke ‘s Ten Minute acrylic painting on a Lightning Scene which has a black background to paint on. Only blue, black, & white needed. It should be easy peasy. I can do this in 10 mins.

I missed out the forest in the background. I am too tired to paint a forest. So some blue white ‘holes’ in the sky. I didn’t like his straight lines for the lake. I wanted a sea. I had a kitchen knife in my hand. Stuck it in a bit of white paint, and then curled some tiny waves. Using the same knife, I swiped the lightning flashes (my hand wasn’t steady enough for a fine brush).

In fact I didn’t even watch the video, I just looked at the finished painting he did, and said I can do that in less than ten mins my way. And I did :))

My painting table is still set up in the garden. Too tired to tidy up. Paintbrushes in bucket of water until tomorrow. We have been promised rain and thunderstorms tomorrow, but I don’t think so because the air is not cold enough. I can’t feel rain in the air.

I am still drop dead shattered after today. So goodnight from me, and goodnight from Popeye....

Happy Friday for tomorrow!!!