sunday morning, i was awake kinda early. i already knew we were headed out to a gaming session (star wars saga edition—great session, btw) later in the day so i figured i might as well go and put some gas in the car as we were low.
now, i noticed the day before that the tires were low and could probably use some air. in my area, it’s very hard to find gas stations where air is free—almost all of them charge. it’s a nuisance, admittedly, as they’re asking for 75 cents for a few minutes, but on principle something i’m opposed to paying.
i went to the gas station i prefer—their prices are pretty good, and the air there is free.
now, the previous gaming session, one of the other players brought a pumpkin pie from a store, b/c he’s a big fan of pumpkin pie. well, it was a pretty forgettable supermarket pie: bland, unappetizing consistency, mushy crust...it just wasn't very interesting. the mrs promised to bake one herself and bring it next time.
so she was awake and commenced work on her pumpkin pie at around 8 am or so. i kissed her and told her where i was headed and headed out.
for some reason, while i normally bring my mobile phone with me when i leave the apartment, i didn’t this time.
big mistake!
well, i went to the station and filled up. that went quickly, of course.
then i went to the air pump.
now, this is one of those automated ones where you set the PSI you want and it will automatically stop when the desired pressure is reached. i’m not a car guy—i can open a hood and say, “the windshield washer fluid goes there, and new oil goes over there” and that’s pretty much it. although oddly enough though, i actually do keep a tire gauge in the car.
well, all four tires were low so i started with the farthest one, then kept going. but with the last one, i noticed that it wasn’t inflating—in fact, it was getting worse. i don’t know how long i kept working at it, but i realized it was practically flat. frustrated, i got the tire gauge and checked. it was at 15 PSI, which more or less means “don’t drive on me!” AFAICT.
i think i have to chalk it up to the undercaffeination that i just didn’t grasp that the pump wasn’t working properly but i had to be out there for—i kid you not, at least 30 minutes—before the attendant called over to me. “hey, that pump is broken—you’re just going to lose air!”
“yeah, thanks for the timely warning, schmuck,” i couldn’t help thinking.
well, long story short, i went to the other station and they use a normal, no-gauge hose that just runs until you stop it. that took me a little while—it was a fast hose—but i did finally finish.
when i got home though, the mrs ran over to me and hugged me, yelling “you scared the hell out of me!”
she’d finished the pie, it was already cooling, i’d been gone almost an hour and she was afraid i’d been in an accident or something!
so obviously that wasn’t a great experience, as you might imagine. but it made me wonder something: when's the last time you went out to run a quick errand and wound up taking a whole lot longer than you ever expected? what happened?
ed
silverwhisper posted on Nov 13, 2007
| views: 361
Comments
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the_infernal_optimist said on Nov 13, 2007....
Ugh, That really sucks - why didn't that attendant (or somebody) take two minutes to tape an "out of order" sign on the broken pump? :-p
There's no such thing as a quick errand with these two kids. :-D I do remember going to the store with DH and little one (I was 8 1/2 months pregnant with linebacker baby) for a few things, and then getting stuck behind the slowest check-writing customer I've ever seen. Of course, by then we had our items on the belt and it didn't seem worth switching lines.
When we finally did get up there, the cashier was soooo slow....and then she called for a price check on a hairbrush. That didn't happen, and didn't happen...she kept insisting that it would be just a minute. Fifteen minutes later, with a pea-sized bladder and an even smaller capacity for patience, I told her to forget it. She started to protest (probably to say "just a minute" again) and I cut her off with a look.
What should've been a 45-minute outing took almost 2 1/2 hours.
~Infernal
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evil_twin said on Nov 13, 2007....
Let's see, about a week ago I decided to run up to Taco Bell which is literally on the corner by our house. It's about a 2 minute car ride. And of course, just like you, I left my phone at home. It was dead, so it was on the charger. But I was only going to be gone ten minutes, so I figured it wasn't a big deal.
Well, when I got there, the place wasn't that busy, but the drive thru was packed. So I just went inside because I figured that would be quicker. And they took my order right away, so I figured I was right. But then I stood there FOREVER. They forgot to make our food. And then they ran out of beans and meat. How the hell does Taco Bell run out of beans and meat?
And the manager started yelling at people when he realized my order had been skipped over. I tried to ask for my money back because I just wanted to leave. But he kept assuring me the order would be right up. So I waited some more. And some more.
I was gone over an hour for a simple trip to Taco Bell. And Nat was totally freaking out. She thought someone held the place up and took me hostage. Or I'd gotten in an accident. She kept listening for sirens and was just about ready to get in her car and come find me. By that time, the stupid cheap food wasn't even worth it!
-evil_twin LA
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silverwhisper said on Nov 13, 2007....
infernal: i know, how hard is it to put up a damned sign?! and yeah, slow cashiers make me cranky. i had one once actually physically inspect each bag to confirm that the items for coupons were really bought, not realizing that she could use the receipt to find 'em! wow but that pissed me off!
kyle: they ran out of beans and meat?! how in the hell can something like that happen?! and the mrs was scared i was in an accident or something, too--she was getting ready to go out looking for me!
ed -
MissMimi said on Nov 13, 2007....
B feels the same way you do, Ed. He's opposed to paying for air -- it's not the money, it's the principle of the thing. It gets a little annoying though to drive to several gas stations, especially in an unfamiliar area, looking for a free pump. Just get the f-ing air already!B's gone out on bike rides, short ones he says, and has ended up being gone for several hours. That makes me nervous as hell.Does the lovely MrsSW use a recipe that makes her pie so yummy? As far as I'm concerned, skip the Thanksgiving dinner and go right for the pumpkin pie. Mmmmmmmmmm. -
silverwhisper said on Nov 13, 2007....
mimi: well, she made the pie from scratch (particularly good crust this time, i thought) but uses canned filling. on a pumpkin pie-related note, infernal posted a from-scratch pumpkin pie filling recipe on her blog a few days ago in the comments.
ed -
beyondtheveil said on Nov 13, 2007....
Ed- I'm good at preventive maintenance, especially on cars. The battery on my truck was due because it was at the end of it's guaranteed life. I replace them at that time to keep my wife or anyone else from a difficult predicament, especially on a trip.
This truck battery had lapsed because it was mine and a couple months ago it barely started one morning. I only use one brand and the first three places I went to were either out or closed, so I had to call my repair shop. They didn't have the exact one for the truck, but said they would get one even if they had to make a special trip.
All of this took the most part of a morning for a thirty minute job. That's what happens when I don't stick with my better judgment.
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skald said on Nov 13, 2007....
They don't charge for air here, not yet anyway. And being a woman they usually do this for me when I ask them if they can measure the air. One did not and I thought it was funny. Well women quality. Never heard of those new pumps.
Anyway when I forget the phone I think all kind of things could happen and they don't. How could I go with out the phone for years. I understand your wifes concern. -
danetteb said on Nov 13, 2007....
It happens to me all the time :D Specially if I walk past a clothing shop. I don't necessarily buy things, I just look looking at it :S
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Eilan said on Nov 13, 2007....
There aren't many places around here where air is free, either.
We're about 3-4 miles from town and shopping. A couple of months ago, my husband went to the store to pick up chocolate milk and a few other items. He ended up being gone for an hour and a half because of traffic was horrible and the store was crowded.
There was another time, right before my husband retired, that 45 minutes after his shift was over, he hadn't made it home or hadn't called. It wasn't uncommon for him to be late if he had to go to a crash, but he'd normally call or have a dispatcher call for him. I was in tears because I figured here he was, less than a month from retirement, and he'd been shot or run over or something. Turns out he'd been bullshitting with some co-workers.
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silverwhisper said on Nov 13, 2007....
beyond: man, i hate being in situations like that where you figure you can put it off one more time and it bites you in the ass...i hate the sense of having put a gun in my mouth and pulled the trigger myself.
skald: honestly, i was so frustrated and so tired that i didn't really think about what she must be thinking, sadly. i know, bad hubby...
danette: hey, window-shopping is a totally different thing! :D
eilan: so that's true out your way too, huh? gah! i should write about the first time i started working a new office and the mrs had to come pick me up in an unfamiliar location in the pre-mobile phone days...while your husband always strikes me as smarter than your average bear, i guess that one day would be an exception, huh?
ed -
crybabylu said on Nov 13, 2007....
I used to get a scare every other day, till I finally realized that JR will be home, when he is home. Not only is his schedule busy in his line of work, but some times he is called out of town. When he gets too tired, he will pull into a shopping mall etc. and kick back and sleep anywhere from 15 mins. to 2-3 hrs.What kind of cracked me up one day is ,believe it or not, he got sleepy turning into our driveway, and he kicked back and went to sleep in the car before coming into the house. There is a small veterinarian clinic behind us, and the girl tending the place saw him asleep in the car and called 911 because she thought he had some kind of heart attack or something.I still kid him about that. -
silverwhisper said on Nov 13, 2007....
heh, that's really funny about the girl at the clinic! :D
ed -
Eilan said on Nov 13, 2007....
ed: My husband asked me why I just didn't call the patrol post to see where he was, but I felt stupid doing that. -
CreativeWoman said on Nov 13, 2007....
My husband loses track of time. I spend a lot of my time worrying and waiting on him. I've even gone looking for him a time or two. It makes me so angry sometimes. He rationalizes it by saying he thinks I won't worry if he shows up by meal time. Grrrr.
One thing I hate when I go to the drive thru at my bank is when I have to wait on someone from a business to have their money bag counted and deposited. That always drags on and on. Of course, it only happens when my poor planning has me pressed for time.
CW -
pookiedookie said on Nov 13, 2007....
I have a diesel Jeep, and I pulled over to the pump, not realizing there was also an unleaded pump right next to it. One one side it wasn't marked, and the other side, it was, so I put it in my tank and started pumping, and just happened to walk around the other side and catch, the marking saying, unleaded.I clicked off the pump, and ran inside, and told them about it. They came out and siphened it out but it sure took some time, and my mom was expecting me to pick her back up from her doctor's appointment, so she was kind of scared i was gone so long. -
silverwhisper said on Nov 13, 2007....
eilan: ah, i can completely understand that. [nods]
CW: his inability to tell time is perhaps sadly unsurprising to me, i'll confess.
duke: o man--they didn't clearly label the pump?! jeez!
ed -
TinSoldier said on Nov 13, 2007....
Heh. I hate when I forget my phone!
this is one of those automated ones where you set the PSI you want and it will automatically stop when the desired pressure is reached.... I have never seen one of those. Huh. -
silverwhisper said on Nov 13, 2007....
are these not that common? weird!
ed -
wombat said on Nov 13, 2007....
Nothing special to write here about me, except when I ran to town to pay a bill and locked my keys in the truck. Took me all day to get home!My ex once "ran to town" to get me some cigs, and came home drunk 5 hours later.(got with some guys and was drinking whiskey!) I was furious, until I saw him sick in the bathroom. He was in the floor rocking around, going,"I'm sick...."I said, "Good!" (He had the cigs, thank goodness, or I might have shoved his head in the toilet!) -
Fallyn said on Nov 13, 2007....
um....every single damn time....i can't run a fast errand....it just CAN'T happen.
oh...and for everyone......the gas stations have a switch inside that will pump the air for free......they'll generally turn it for you if you've bought gas from them.
you just have to ask.
this has been true of nearly every gas station i've asked......
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silverwhisper said on Nov 14, 2007....
wombat: o wow...that sucks about locking your keys in the truck. i hate it when something silly like that happens to me and winds up costing me so much time!
fallyn: really? that would never have occurred to me. of course, alternately i can simply not give them my money instead... :>
ed -
crybabylu said on Nov 14, 2007....
well I guess Ed, now I am only 2 minutes behind you. -
silverwhisper said on Nov 14, 2007....
and now i'm way behind you!
ed -
queenparanoia said on Nov 14, 2007....
that sucks ed...and youre wife was worried too!!! -
silverwhisper said on Nov 14, 2007....
boy was she! i will never forget my damned phone again!
ed -
Fallyn said on Nov 14, 2007....
ed..... it never would have occurred to me either......but a friend of mine worked at a gas station and told me that. -
silverwhisper said on Nov 14, 2007....
that's really useful to know! thanks for passing it on!
ed -
carmachu said on Nov 14, 2007....
Your dumbass award is in the mail.
You need to spray first before it goes on the tire....to make sure it works.
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silverwhisper said on Nov 16, 2007....
well, i know that now! and there was definitely air coming from it, but i guess very little!
ed
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