Your friendly neighborhood tow truck driver

Updated.

You know, I think that tow truck driver was making a lot of that up.  I’m not saying he was lying.  Just that some of what he told us during the hour when our car was riding on the back of his rig and we were riding with him the eighty-odd miles to the garage near Uncle Merlin’s fell into the category of tall tales, fish stories, and stretchers.

I believe he’s built his own stock car to race from the frame up and out.  I’m not sure about his building three of them that won state championships. And the retired scientist who signed on as a silent partner in his hauling business who committed suicide before the business really took off so the tow truck driver had to go back to working extra shifts for the garage seems a little too good to be true.  The scariest story he told us I hope he was making up---about going to the scenes of two DUI wrecks in a week and finding that the driver of both cars was the same drunk teenager, that one…

Oh. No. This isn’t the same tow truck driver who pulled us off the Jersey Turnpike when we broke down on our way to see the blonde’s folks the weekend before last.

This guy came to get us when our broke down Sunday, the day before yesterday, when our car broke down on Route 84 in Connecticut as we were on our way to visit Uncle Merlin.

Exact same thing happened both times. Car’s rolling along fine. Suddenly engine light comes on. Engine dies. Car won’t start again.

This makes me believe that it didn’t get fixed when it was in New Jersey.

As you can imagine, I’m not in the best of moods over this.  Doesn’t help my mood that my back is killing me.

But Uncle Merlin swears by the mechanics who are looking at it now.  And he’s given me some exercises to do to help my back.  So maybe by this afternoon both the car and my back will be ready to go again.

I’ll let you know as soon as I know.

Updated with what I know: Picked up the car. New fuel filter. It runs. Got us where we needed to get to tonight.

The big news though is that God really is out to get me. See His comment.

Thanks to all of you who’ve helped out over the last week. 

Comments

[J. Dvorak]

From all you've written about Uncle Merlin, I'd trust his choice.

[Sherri]

I find that ice helps when my back hurts. Heat feels better, but ice does a better job with the pain.

[God]

You sure are thick-headed, Mannion. Do you really think these problems are coincidences? Start believing again or you won't be driving anywhere ever again. Capice?

Love, God.

[minstrel hussain boy]

i was at a convention of recovery people and someone remarked on how many bullets (both metaphor and literal) i've dodged and they said "god must have a plan for you."

i said "yeah, but what if his plan is to keep fucking with me?"

[Lance Mannion]

Sherri, thanks for the tip. I've been using heat, but I'll add the cold.

mhb, here's hoping God gets bored with both of us and leaves us alone for a while.