A Day Out of Life

Yesterday -- Day 6 of the new year, was once again a go nowhere do nothing day; and grateful I was for it. Outside was dark, cold, raining cats and dogs the whole entire day. It was one of those days when one feels thankful to be retired rather than having to head out to a job.

On top of that, we’d had another earthquake at 6:42 am. Centered in Banning, this one was a whopping 4.8, but just a little jiggle by the time it got to us.

I don’t know what if anything, by way of activities, is scheduled this month because, once again, we’ve not yet received a calendar of events.

I wonder what excuse the office will come up with this time.

Though the rain had ceased and the sun actually showed itself for a short while this morning, I was looking forward to another day of not having to go anywhere not having to do anything, except to wait for the mailman as I was expecting a book.

When I went down about the time mail should be arriving, I detoured to drop trash at the dumpster, happened to look over to where the car was parked and noticed one of the tires looked odd.

Not wanting to accept reality, I told myself it was an optical illusion that the tire looked a little deflated but thought I’d better drive to the tire place to have it checked.

I headed back upstairs to grab an umbrella and redress for heading out in the rapidly changing weather. By the time I got back down to the car, the tire looked even more deflated to where reality slapped me in the face – it was flat.

Not wanting to chance it was too flat to drive the eight miles to the tire place, I called for roadside assistance.

“Do you have a spare”, they asked?

“I have a spare, but it’s been in the back a long time. I don’t know what kind of shape it’s in, whether it has air.”

Given a two hour window before the calvary arrived, I waited in the Community Room so I could let him in the gate.

When the call came, I looked and saw a truck and one of those little funny looking one-door cars at the gate.

Rushing out to the guy with the truck I gave him my code to ring my phone, from where I could dial 9 to open the gate.

He seemed overly thankful.

As the gate opened, I told him, “It’s four cars down”, entered behind him and wondered where he was going when he kept driving past my car and around to the other side of the complex.

Then my phone rang again. As I answered, I looked over and realized I was connected with the guy in the funny looking one-door car.

Was my face red.

The black truck had nothing to do with me. I’d let the wrong person into the complex and even was directing him to my car.

Duh!

Both he and the roadside service technician must have thought I wasn’t quite right in the head, but oh well. Chalk it up as a senior moment.

My day got better thereafter, as the technician found my spare, having been protected from the weather and all, to look brand new and in excellent shape.

The problem tire was found to have a nail but, more luck for me, the nail was in the top and repairable, rather than on the side.

After roadside service took care of business, it was off to the tire place and another hour and a half out of my day.

What’s on tap for remainder of the day?

Oh … wait … there is no remainder of the day. What with the wait for roadside service, the time it took for him to switch the tires out, the wait for tire place to get to my car, there is no day left. I barely made it back home in time to catch Judge Judy.