Running out of gas. Literally.
So, I’m that person. The person who ignored the light and ran out of gas. The person whose car
sputtered to a dead stop at a major intersection, during peak traffic. The person who nodded in
agreement when a strange man pulled up to yell “You’re a f&cking a&shole!”. Yes, sir. Yes, I am.
In my defence, I have driven much further with that light on. Precedence should count for something!
My car clearly betrayed me.
Lucky for me, my friend Remo was minutes away. He stopped for gas and filled my tank within minutes.
I’d love to say that Remo was a selfless hero. Arriving without judgement, proud to help a friend.
But that’s not what happened. Instead, the guy who I thought was my ‘chill’ friend – turned out to be a
judgey old man. His response went something like this:
“You ran out of gas? You’re THAT person? Was the light on? Your car was working, right? It alerted you
to the low fuel? You ignored that light? Now you’re blocking traffic? You’re THAT person!?!”
The ridicule continued when we arrived at the event we were organizing, and I exited the car in a dress
and (epic) platform heels.
“How long did it take you to pick out those shoes? Evidently too long to get gas.” Ugh.
Admittedly, it made for a fun party story. Especially when we realized another friend was in the line of
cars when it happened. (Note to thank hubby for the tinted windows).
I share this admittedly embarrassing story, not as a cautionary tale (because that goes without saying),
but as a reminder that ‘a friend in need, is a friend indeed’.
My lousy moment was resolved quickly by someone who cared enough to stop what he was doing and
save the day. Not everyone has friends like that, and I’m grateful I do.
I’ll be thinking about what the universe was trying to tell me. I have a feeling my literal ‘running out of
gas’ has something to do with my metaphorical tank – but I’ll save that for another day.
For now, I’m just feeling happy to have good friends. A good friend who saved the day, AND inspired me
to blog again after a serious dry spell. Wait … empty tank! There it is!
If you have a friend like this, feel free to tag them. Good friends deserve extra love today and always.
Tx, Remo. You da’man.