the end of a perfect morning

[brightlywoven]

Finally getting out of the hospital at 10:20, I decided to go home via Tesco's to do some very overdue shopping for home. (Series of flood related events resulted in me driving to work for the first time). As I was driving out of the car park onto Cowley Rd, a passerby pointed out to me that my rear tyre was 'rather flat'.

Hopping out I see a cartoon-style deflation, with the rim of the wheel almost on the ground. I proceeded to sit back in the car, turn on the hazard lights and try to work out what to do. My (by this stage *very* tired) brain was drawing an utter blank. Get towed? Abandon the car (and a large amount ot shopping) to buy a new wheel? I pulled out the phone to call the brains trust, when the guy behind me started honking and swearing at me. I gestured at him to drive around, so he pulled up next to me and started yelling abuse at me. I exploded 'I have a flat tyre! My hazard lights are on! What do you want me to do? He looked at the cartoon tyre, grunted 'I see' and drove off. Then someone else behind me started tooting and we had the whole thing over again.

By this stage I was in tears, the phone had connected to exactlyhalf, and I was flailing verbally at him. Then 3 very friendly workmen strolled up. 'Don't cry love', says one, 'it's only the bottom half that's flat'. Then they opened my boot, found my jack and spare tyre ('oh', said my brain 'that's right, cars have spare tyres *in* them') and proceeded to change the tyre for me.

I'm very, very grateful to these white knights (two guys from Bristol and and Irishman), and am resolved never to shop after night shift again, even if we're down to tea and toast at home.

Comments

[footnotetoplato.livejournal.com]

I remember thinking it was kind of weird that /all/ cars carried around a whole spare wheel when I was little. It seemed really extravagant - I mean bikes don't tend to have a spare wheel. It does, looking at it now, seem an incredibly sensible idea, though.

Sorry to hear about the incident, but I'm glad the people were so nice. The one time I had to help change a tire I was with someone who knew what they were doing, fortunately.

[dr-biscuit.livejournal.com]

I did once get my dad to teach me how, but have forgotten. Am now resolved to look it up, and put some written instructions in the car (eg. how to get the jack and tyre out. Which direction to screw the thingy-magigs on. (And in which order...I seem to remember that was important.

And must get tyre fixed before driving to Boscastle ;)

[cuiaalfheim.livejournal.com]

We (M and I) are SO glad that you are safe. I'm very, very sorry that people where honking and shouting at you...nothing to drive one into a fluster like the sheer force of rudeness. To those white knights, WELL DONE-let this story inspire all of us of the female persuasion that have trouble believing that men can have positive intentions.



Oh, and a big hug from the two of us. :)

[dr-biscuit.livejournal.com]

thanks honey! It does indeed bolster your faith in humanity when people do randomly helpful things. The stereotype of female driver saved from her own cluelessness both rankles and tickles me, because I do like to think of myself as the independent type, but the whole thing was *so* amusingly cliched. If only I had gotten out, stood by the car and done a helpless little ol' me act!

I hope your road trip is being incident free!

[cuiaalfheim.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I can't really picture you as a "Oh dearie me, help, help, some strong and strapping man, oh, help!" type. :)

On a side note, the English gods are quite angry with me for mispelling 'where'. GAH! Maybe I should ask for help from a tall, strapping grammarian...