Were you in Wiscasset last week when the traffic lights turned red and stayed red?

Did you at first get that feeling not uncommon to sitting at most any intersection, the feeling the light has been red "forever" and maybe something's wrong with it? But you know it probably isn't, and it just feels like it should have turned by now because you have someplace to be?

I for one have that feeling when I press the "Walk" button downtown and, after a while, unless other, more downtown walking-savvy people are standing there also, I start to wonder if I pressed the button to walk in the right direction or if I had set it to cross the perpendicular street.

It (by now, years into the system) generally turns out I pressed the right button and the lights are doing their job, limiting how often walkers cross so traffic does not bottleneck. And Wiscasset is beautiful, so standing downtown for any reason or number of minutes can be enjoyable.

Sitting in traffic, Wiscasset or anywhere, not so much. 

What a strange sensation that must have been to be sitting at the red light and to just keep sitting at it, and then realizing that light is going to stay red until someone fixes it.

Kudos to all for whatever patience they exercised with the afternoon surprise. And kudos to the town.

On social media, the town government, townspeople, Wiscasset Area Chamber of Commerce and we were all spreading word so people could change or adjust their plans, and minimize the extent of the tie-up; Maine Department of Transportation was informed; and police were directing traffic.

So, while one system was on the blink (traffic light humor), another system or series of systems worked just fine, to get everyone through it.

And speaking of social media, when I looked up "lights stuck on red Wiscasset" on Facebook, I found this July 26, 2021 post from Pamela Dunning, a resident you may know as Wiscasset Public Library's longtime director or as a selectman:

"I drove through downtown Wiscasset earlier today. All of the street lights were flashing red like crazy and some loud beeper was going off. It should have been pandemonium. It was not.

"Chief (Lawrence Hesseltine) was standing in the middle of mayhem central calmly and professionally guiding traffic through the intersection. Thank you Chief for keeping the traffic sane and maintaining the flow. Great job."

Four years later, Hesseltine's still chief, Dunning still heads the library and serves on the selectboard, and Wiscasset still knows how to get the job done when the unexpected happens.

Week's positive parting thought (for me): Next week's editorial just got easier. When I typed the aforementioned keywords on Facebook, I came across something else pretty interesting that ties into all of this, sort of. Thus, this week was Part 1. Here is a somewhat vague clue to Part 2: It will pond-er Wiscasset's similarities to a place far outside New England. Guesses welcome!