IT HAPPENED several years ago, but I'll never forget the eerie feeling on a night of Christmas-light cruising left me lost and confused on a Caroline County back road.

Over the course of several miles, I'd gone from four-lane highway to a two-lane byway to a navigable gravel road to an uneven dirt path.

Scouring my map for a clue to where my shortcut went wrong, I quickly realized this lane was nowhere on my map.

Instead of back-tracking and following a road that was on my map, I stubbornly pressed on, moved by a mix of exploration and bullheaded thinking.

When the hole-filled path led to a spot where much of the dirt seemed to be drooping into a water-filled ditch on one side, I stopped and pondered what to do.

At that moment, I noticed a big billboard off to one side of what must have been a busier place in another time.

"Have you been saved?" asked the billboard promoting a particular religion.

I took the sign as a sign, took a deep breath and pushed on, half expecting the wheels of the car to slide down into the slime.

Instead, I scooted right through and within a mile or so, found the second part of my shortcut.

I share the story because I'm once again in the midst of a column Christmas ritual, the week where I spend several nights driving about to view the lights nominated for my annual listing of Grand Holiday Displays.

If all goes well out on the subdivision streets and back roads of our region, that list will appear in Sunday's paper.

Though getting around to see and verify the information on all the homes is a chore, it's also a chance each year to travel the length and breadth of the region all in a few nights.

It provides a comprehensive and all-inclusive look of and feel for the region that you don't get from separate side trips.