When we pulled up to the gas pump, I asked Dee if she had enough money for the rest of the trip. She said she thought she had 50 cents in the bottom of her bag and she started rummaging around for it.
She thought I was asking for money for gas and she was going to happily help out.
Dee’s been hitchhiking for three days on a journey from California to Kentucky.
Those of you who know me know that I’m usually living in a fairy tale where nothing bad ever happens to me.
I’ve rubbed shoulders with some really dangerous people, been in a few tight spots, and dared people to kill me, and gone off on crazy walks without food, water, or money, and this and that… just screaming at the Universe to do me in… and the Universe has soundly refused. Sometimes the universe makes a joke, then refuses.
This last eight years has been happening after happening of me being in the right place at the right time to meet the right person for whatever reason that ends up making everything go a little better. And, what’s weird, I’m not the type of person who normally asks anyone for any help. Yet, help comes.
Anyway, I was bummed out this morning.
Days ago, against my better judgment and against an internal set of Standard Operating Procedures that I’ve been developing since I was 19, I decided to like someone who was probably scamming me.
So this person needed $40 to repay another person who made a loan for her kid’s t-ball uniform. I only had $19 on me, but thanks.
Another day this person needed $40, but she’d pay me back at 7:30pm on the following day. No problem.
The following day, she calls and there’s an urgent need for antibiotics for her kid because he was going to need to have tubes put into his ears.
So I asked how much… she called the pharmacy and got back to me, $50.
So I asked, when?
Today would be great.
So then I said I would meet her at the pharmacy to pay for them.
Well, the pharmacy was closed that Sunday, would be open tomorrow at 8am. (Implying that it would be easiest to bring the money today, perhaps?)
So, I said I’d meet her at that pharmacy at 8am on Monday morning.
Ok, so I got up early… knowing she wouldn’t be there, already a little brokenhearted about this… and drove to Yukon.
But I couldn’t find that pharmacy. I’d looked up the address Sunday afternoon, but the streets in Yukon all have like three names and the hundred blocks are sometimes OKC and sometimes relative to the center of Yukon. And, for some reason, Virgin Mobile/Sprint 3G was down so I couldn’t use GPS.
I searched for 30 minutes for the place and finally got close and asked someone. Ok, yes, laugh. And, it was a woman working at 7-11 who told me where it was.
I was 12 minutes late.
She wasn’t there.
I called her. Phone was off — instant voicemail.
Sent a text saying I’d wait 5 minutes, but I only waited 3, and then went to work.
Luckily, work is good to work on, so I worked on work and then went to lunch.
I got this fortune cookie: Your troubles will cease and fortune will smile upon you.
The people at the Yukon Super Buffet are SO nice… they’re all from China, of course.
In the past when I’ve had a traumatic thing happen and I’ve gotten all fight-or-flighty, I’ve wanted to retreat into a cave, but I was determined to keep working…
And I did get a couple of little sticky things fixed at work, but then I was overcome by the feeling that it was time to go. Right then. Time to go.
So, I apologized and said good bye.
And waiting on the I-40 on-ramp in the perfect position at a time when there wasn’t any traffic behind me, I could safely stop and get her, was Dee!!!!
AHAHHAHAHA
So, I got to help Dee.
I’m EVEN STEVEN again.
God is great.
Anyway, I drove her out to the McDonald’s on I-44.
This was the sky as I turned back towards OKC. My phone didn’t do it justice, but I love it when I can see sunshine streaming down through the clouds. It’s one of my favorite types of sky.
Hey, I know you’re reading this. I’m not the least bit angry about it. Be careful out there because some guys can get pretty mean if they think they’ve been slighted.
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