So yesterday I wanted to take care of a few errands and hopefully get back home to sew a new top so I could blog about it! Turns out the top was an absolute disaster and once I actually figure out how to fix it I'll share my journey with you.
BUT, today I want to share a little bit of insight of what happened yesterday.
Normally my tire low light is a common signal that it's cold out, and my tires probably need a bit of bumping up to keep them happy and satisfy the light.
I pulled into the local Valero station and noticed there was some out of order paper over the part of the air machine that takes money. Now this could either mean that the machine itself was broken, or just the quarter part- as the machine itself looked just fine. I was hoping it was the later because I totally didn't have any coins with me. Why do we even use coins still? Its so dumb! Why do we still have the penny? I digress.
I decided before pulling away that I would double check with the cashier and maybe they'd run the machine for me so I could go about my day.
This is when I met the rudest woman in the world.
"Hi there, I was wondering, is the air machine out of order completely, or is it just the bit that takes the quarters?"
Now here she could have responded with a "Oh, it's out completely. Sorry about that." or even a "Yeah its broken. Sorry!"
but instead she replied with a question of her own.
"Does it have paper on it?"
"Yeah- but its just on the quarter-"
"Then its out of order."
"Great. Super. Thank you SO much."
After dealing with employee of the month at Valero, I checked the air pump at another station down the road- also busted! At this point I just wanted to get on with my day so in times of usual car annoyances I dialed my dad ( on hands free bluetooth mind you, I'm not a maniac) and shared with him my low tire light woes. He suggested I visit a tire shop, where they would usually check the pressure and fill for free, but I wouldn't have to worry too much about driving on them while they were low- as long as I got it sorted soon.
So I set out to do my grocery run and tried to avert my eyes from the ever persistent yellow exclamation mark telling me something was wrong. Yes I know. Please chill out. Let me drive!
On my way home I was able to pull into a Firestone and they were able to get to my car right away. Fantastic. I'd be out of here in no time.
Nope.
The mechanic asked for me to pull my car forward a bit after checking the pressure, but surprisingly not adding any air to my tires, which had me raising my very well groomed eyebrows.
"Yeah you've got a nail in your tire."
"Well gosh golly darn."*
*may or may not have been what I actually said at that exact moment.
Thankfully they were able to take my car in as it was only me and a broken down jeep filling their bays.
I filled out the paper work and was suggested to sit down and wait. Either it would be a repair and not cost too much, or if it was too fair gone I'd have to get my tire replaced. I went to pour myself a cup of coffee (which I had been craving as I had left before my normal pre-breakfast cup of life) only to find that the machine had long since been shut off, and the coffee inside was indeed cold.
As I begrudgingly grabbed a water bottle out of the mini fridge next to the betrayal machine I realized I wasn't how I normally would be in this situation. I was weirdly calm. Happy even. Sure, this was a pain in the ass- but really, what could I do about it? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Anyone who knows me knows I worry like an old woman. I can count the number of times I've done something against my usual worries that hold me back from doing so, and half of the time they've turned out alright. One of those times I ended up concussed after flying off a mountian bike down a steep trail in New Zealand, and the other I had a blast riding on top of an oil rig while it was running.
I don't suggest doing either of those activities, though the oil rig rodeo did give me a bit of street cred among my delinquent friend group at the time.
I had a clear mind yesterday, and none of it was stress or worry about what would happen to my car. It was liberating and relaxing at the same time. I couldn't even be mad about the lack of coffee.
So I sat, and waited, and after about an hour my tire was repaired and I was on the road.
So thanks to a nail getting stuck in my tire I now want to practice in times of stress or anxiety, just taking a moment to clear my head and not worry. Or at least try to not worry. Or maybe worry a little less than normally. Baby steps.
