Last week we were up in Vermont and decided to pack it in for the winter. So we jam packed our car with all the stuff and then in an attack of generosity I agreed to take my friends family's skis and one of their kids. My car was more stuffed than a kid going to a college dorm for his freshman year.
We were driving along the highway all curled up in our respective places with skis, poles, boots, comforters, helmets, humidifiers, books, various plastic nerf guns of all sorts, Xbox, left over groceries and so on in every nook and cranny of the car.
To keep the two kids (my son and his friend) entertained, we were trading jokes along the way. My wife decided to stay back in Boston, so she was not on this fun journey with us.
Then - right in the middle of the journey, I had a flat-tire!
Luckily, I was right next to an exit, so I was able to pull off. There was a pizza place right in front of the gas station I pulled into and so I bundled the two kids there. I called Audi roadside assistance - and they showed up within 15 mins on a Sunday afternoon. (They have my customer loyalty!)
The problem was I had to pull all the stuff I had crammed into the car out to get at the spare wheel. The parking lot in the gas station looked like I was having a winter gear yard sale!
The spare wheel is smaller than the actual wheel - so now there was even less space in the trunk than before. In went all the gear again. The two kids crunched and bent over even more!
Our second half of the journey commenced. And then I realized we were out of jokes. I had a decision to make. Have two cranky kids in the car now or dip into my collection of off-color jokes and risk the 'wrath of moms' later.
Our very slow second half of the trip was punctuated by kids curled over not because they were uncomfortable, but because they were laughing.
What impressed me, was their repertoire of off-color jokes!
3 comments:
That is a pretty funny story.
This is our family’s version.
My family used to travel in Europe a lot when my brother and I were 9 / 10 years old.
Because our cars were always old, my father was good at maintenance and preparation.
We were going up a mountain in Germany . The car was packed. We had a child divider made up of cases in the backseat between us to stop my brother and I fighting. Sometimes an only child is a good thing.
We got a flat.
A car pulled in behind us. It was a policecar. They informed us that they were not allowed to help. Germanic efficiency. They then settled back in their car to observe the fun.
However, my father was so prepared that not only had he trained his boys to change a tire he also had the spare tire at the top of the luggage in the car!
To play to the growing number of bystanders, only my brother and I got out of the car. We took the spare, jacked up the car, put the spare on. Released the jack and pulled out 5 minutes later.
My father was very smug as he waved to the cops as we pulled out!
This was funny...just imagining one slipping alligator-like into a swimming pool out of shame is hilarious.
I am most fascinated by how you find time in your busy schedule to send these very learned missives almost once every week! Thanks much for your thoughts that always are thought provoking and mind expanding.
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