I know that when it rains it pours, so I guess I kind of expected things to go bad all at once. I came home from work, and wanted to head to the Know Theater and partake of the improv workshop that Kirk Kiver run. Since I have not gotten too much exercise, outside of the walking in Chicago, I thought it would be a good idea to ride my bike, from the hills of Price Hill, to the far side of downtown. Not a long ride by any means, but enough to get my legs pumping again on my bike.
As I thought of this awesome idea, I was still at work, finishing up some much needed office decor changes. I had brought a sticker to work that looks like a stencil of New York reflecting off of the water. In the move, I had removed this from Shannon's wall, and placed it on one of her pictures, using the glass as a holder for it. On the way to work, my "Low Fuel" light came on, which is did a couple of miles from home the night before. Pressing my luck as I have previously done, I once again took the chance that there is enough gas to get to work, which there was!
After putting up the stencil, and admiring my new office surroundings, I headed to the gas station. It was crowded, and each pump had cars waiting. I saw a young kid emerge from a POS (Piece of Shit). I knew that he would not been long, as I reminisced about my youth and the fact I never had any money to put gas in my car. I pulled in behind him, and my instincts were right. He barely put the nozzle in the tank before he was pulling it out, and hopped back in his car. As I pulled ahead, I see that he only put $3 into his pile of rust.
I went to put my debit car into the pump, when I realized, I forgot my wallet at home. At this point, I was on fumes, and unless I come up with at least a gallon of gas, I am screwed! I dug around in my car, and for some reason, I had $6 in my center console! Just by the grace of God those dollars were there. The line was relatively long for a simple gas station, and the it seemed like everyone wants cigarettes, and/or lottery tickets. What happened to just gas and soda? I got to the counter and said "Six on pump one please." Well, pump one was the pump that is closest to the window, and everyone could see I am driving a Hummer. I heard little snickers behind me, and one person said "really?" I could tell by there reaction that they thought it was a little ridiculous to put only $6 in a gas guzzler.
With gas prices being so high, I put my $6 into the tank in just under a minute. As the car started, the Low Fuel light faded, but the gas gauge barely moved. About 1/4 of mile down the road, the Low Fuel light came on again, only to mock my insignificant purchase. With 1.5 gallons in the tank, I knew that would be enough to get me home.
I was excited to ride my bike to the workshop. It was a hot day, but I needed the exercise. Little did I know that my excitement would quickly turn to frustration. The tires were flat, and needed air. The back tire inflated fine, however, when I went to put air in the front tire, the valve stem broke off inside the pump. Now I have a pump that I cannot use, and a tire that is still flat. The pump had to be disassembled, and the tube had to be replaced. All of which, I didn't really have time to do if I was to get to the workshop on time. Hastily, I fixed them both, and was ready to ride. I grabbed a pair of glasses that have yellow lenses for night riding, and they broke in my hands. Really? How much shit is going to have to go wrong before I can get out of the house?
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