2018 On the Road Again #8

The spot in Brandon where hitchhikers stand is a good one in that there is a lot of traffic including trucks and at least half of them have slowed down because of the traffic lights. The shoulder is reasonably wide and as the road is flat and straight, the sight lines are good. I was right in believing that the winds would move the clouds away. It was now a clear day - the wind however, having done its job, continued to blow hard. It was windy enough that I had to use my chin strap to keep my hat on my head. Holding my sign was difficult as the wind kept on trying (and on more than one occasion succeeding) in blowing it out of my hand. I like hitchhiking and the spot at the edge of town is a good one, but an hour or two in the wind, the blowing of road dirt into my mouth and eyes made it a little bit less fun than usual. After a too long wait I got another ride.

It again was not the epic drive that I had been hoping for This driver was only going to Regina - drive of about four hours. A respectable distance and certainly helpful, but my goal for the day was Calgary. I was starting to develop a certain sinking feeling that my goal would not be reached. My driven, although I did not find out until an hour or two into the journey was a dentist. I have never socially known a dentist before and it was interesting to hear his perspectives on his profession.

My driver had spent much of his professional life running his own practice but had found it stressful. I had always assumed that dentist had stressful lives (and a surprisingly high suicide rate) because no one likes them - they may be the most universally hated profession in the western world. But no. In fact when consumer surveys are evaluated, it would appear that most people while they dislike dentists in general, think their own dentist is quite wonderful. The stress comes from running a small business with no training, of being responsible for a number of staff, of being the sole provider of income. I had never thought about that before and it made some sense. Although I still think that working in a profession that we all think is overpaid and may hurt us, must take a toll on them. I think it is interesting that he did not tell me his profession until we were well into our drive.

My driver had retired at some point and then started to work part time as a dentist in a federal penitentiary. One doesn't really think about it but of course, criminals who have received long sentences get toothaches too. My driver told me that some of his patients were the nicest and had the most patience of any of his customers. Of course as he said, they were not going anywhere and certainly not in any rush to get there.

It was a great conversation - my driver was friendly, intelligent and had interesting stories to tell. His car was a hybrid vehicle and it was fun to watch his display showing where the power was coming from. It seemed to be the perfect car for him. Not the fastest car on the road, but very comfortable and seemed to handle very smoothly.

While he had further to go, Regina was his destination for the day. He was looking for some cheap motels and I was of no help to him at all. He would have dropped me off almost anywhere (and got a bit irritable when I dithered) but I finally decided to get off where I was reasonably sure there was a bus stop. My last two trips though Regina, with me hoping to get a ride at the Husky had not turned out well. I just wanted to get through town a quickly as possible.
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