Oliver: 'Newfangled' device proves to be useful

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I wouldn’t call myself a technophobe.

Sure, I waited longer than most people to jump onto the CD bandwagon once it became apparent that cassette tapes were going the way of the dinosaur.

But I’ve never used the word “newfangled” for anything other than a joke.

Then my husband decided that he needed a GPS device, one that gives turn-by-turn directions.

My response: Why do we need that? I’m good with a map.

And so began my wary relationship with the British-sounding chick vying to become chief navigator of the family.

Being a magnanimous sort, I figured I’d give “her” a chance.

That is, until a trip to Kentucky nearly found her thrown from our moving car.

I had three sets of directions: one from the friends we were going to visit, one from MapQuest that I had printed out before the trip, and the ones she was barking from her perch on the dashboard.

None of them were the same.

Meanwhile, my husband was looking to me to tell him where to go. “Recalculate” this, mister.

Stifling my urge to fling her, I hit the “off” button. Problem solved.

Sure, there were a couple of times when she got us to a restaurant in an unfamiliar area. And got us from Point A to Point B when I didn’t have a map. Or didn’t want to think that hard.

But her necessity in my life was questionable.

That is, until I found myself lost in the middle of nowhere in the dark. Did I mention that it also was snowing so hard that you couldn’t see the road?

Let me explain.

For years, we’ve traveled to my sister’s house in Somonauk by the same route. Sadly, there has been so much growth along Route 47 that it just doesn’t make sense to go that way anymore.

So I’ve been trying new routes. This time, I figured I’d give MapQuest a shot.

We encountered no problems getting there, and I was pleased that my husband decided to leave “her” on map mode. The silence was golden.

When we left for home, it had grown dark and very snowy.

OK, so the map function would be good, just to confirm where we were. There aren’t a lot of road signs in corn country.

Next thing we knew, things didn’t look right.

I’m certain that we made every turn called for. But we were lost. And my paper map showed no back roads.

Guess who saved the day? Once we decided to trust her.

There was a perilous moment when it sure looked like the snow-hidden “road” she wanted us to go down really was a cornfield.

Somehow, though, she guided us home.

And maybe, just maybe, this newfangled gadget isn’t so bad after all.

• Joan Oliver is a community editor for the Northwest Herald. She can be reached at 815-526-4552 or by e-mail at joliver@nwherald.com.

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