Our little car was jam packed with cans for recycling, food for the food bank, and clothing for the thrift store

Yesterday I had emptied a 5 gallon gas can into our tank and Ella said this morning it may be that we have water in our gas. That may turn out to be an expensive 5 gallons of gas.

The following are text messages from HUMx Roadside Assistance

••• Hi, I’m Roadside Chat. Stay tuned for updates! You can track, manage or cancel your roadside rescue with our Rescue Tracker: https://rsq.ws/l40y1kd
••• We’re finding the best nearby rescuer. At times, this can take up to 15 minutes. We appreciate your patience and please stay safe.
••• Due to labor shortages in your area, finding a rescuer is taking longer than normal. Rest assured we will provide details shortly.
••• Our goal is to assist you quickly. Due to labor shortages, there’s currently limited help in your area.  
••• SPYKER TOWING AND ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE LLC have the best arrival time between 12:28 PM 12:38 PM.. Their number is 512-383-1554. Keep up to date her http:///rsg. ws/ir26rj5.
••• SPYKER TOWING & ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE LLC is still on-track. Until they arrive, stay safe. We will update you if anything changes.
••• SPYKER TOWING & ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE LLC is on their way.
••• Hi, just a reminder that SPYKER TOWING & ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE LLC is still on track!
••• It is best to be with your vehicle at the time of service whenever possible.
••• SPYKER TOWING & ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE LLC has arrived. Look for them or call 512-382-1554 to make sure they see you.

10.33 to 1:07 for Tom and Ella waiting for the tow truck driver.  1:07 to 2:16 for Ella waiting in a parking lot before Merle came to rescue her

When the tow truck arrived, he had room for only one in the cab. I went with him to Firestone and left Ella waiting in the shade in a parkinglot. I was hoping that Firestone would have a shuttle or courtesy car to go get Ella. They did not. I called Ella and told her to call an Uber. She said that she was going to call Leigha (who works from home) to see if she could do an emergency run. In the meantime, I received a call from our friend Merle. I asked if she could go get Ella. Merle was able to get Ella and take her home. Yay! I really wasn’t comfortable with leaving Ella like that, even if it was her suggestion.

Yep! Water in the gas. One and a half hours of labor plus parts plus tax = $271.79 that was a very expensive 5 gallons of gas. Plus $32.83 for 11 1/2 gallons of gasoline.

After our normal morning routine, we loaded into the car and headed toward Jarrell to deliver the aluminum cans that we had picked up yesterday at church. We didn’t get very far down Crystal falls parkway when the car died. We pulled into a parking lot and called roadside assistance. By text message we were told that due to labor shortages it was taking longer than usual to find a tow service. When they finally found somebody it was going to take an hour and a half or a little more to get somebody to our location. So there we sat.

We didn’t make it to the metal recycler today. It closed at 5. I didn’t get home until nearly 6:00. I tried calling to reschedule the HCCM from 9:15 tomorrow morning to later in the day, so that I could get rid of the aluminum before loading with our monthly food allotment. However, they had closed at 3:00pm.

Once I arrived home, I unloaded all of the aluminum cans into our apartment. That was necessary to have room for grocery pick up tomorrow. We have lots and lots of grocery bags that we will donate to the food pantry tomorrow. Those were loaded into the car. That works out okay because the bags will be unloaded at the place where we pick up the groceries. I didn’t think to take a photo of the back of the car now loaded with bags. I may get one in the morning.

Yes, many things about today were inconvenient, but I thank God that the car stalled out only about a mile from home and I was able to get off the road and safely into a parkinglot. It could have been a far different story had it happened on the interstate sixty or seventy miles from home.

Goodnight and God bless.

©2022 Thomas E Williams