Best Option

Friday afternoon,
I did my best to beat rush hour traffic,

I am spit into a pre-happy hour rush crawl,
puttering between 0 mph, 2, 0, 2, and 0.

Getting nowhere fast,
50 minutes to Montrose,
ug.

Not a hurry,
breathing,
patience practiced.

Jam to Phish,
Play it cool,
Chill.

Nearest exit,
Irving Park able to escape,
Ug.

Irving Park moves equally slow,
0, 2, 0, 2, 0,
but patiently preserver east.

Hours later,
Still on west side,
a light is out.

Blink blink,
4 way stop,
long long long lines.

Take sharp right,
regretfully not soon enough,
finally pick up speed.

Eventually,
Smooth sweet south east,
of Elston.

Just past box store hood,
a forever light at Fullerton and Damen,
I shoot pictures.

I scope out the cyclers,
their faces saying,
"get me out of here."

I know that face,
I've felt that face,
the true experience of bone shattering cold.

Yet they push through it,
because for now,
this is their best option.