Tuesday, July 7, 2015

The Trials of Man Solo - Getting Smog Testy



So, because of a series of age induced incidents involving my car's health,
I had to leave it at the shop for the full day, leaving me to find alternate transport to work and back at the end of the day.  I have a bus card, so that was my option of choice.  Because I had no patience for an unknown bus schedule, I decided not to stand and wait, so I walked from Franklin Ave to Santa Monica Boulevard- a good 15 minute walk if a brisk pace is kept.  Once I got a bus on Santa Monica, it was pretty easy and I was dropped off right in front of my work place.
At the end of the day, I did the same thing in reverse.  I walked from Santa Monica to Franklin again, because I had no idea when there would be a bus and I wanted to be sure to get there before they closed.  Of course, after arriving and waiting about 20 minutes, and they were almost done, another problem came to light.  My car would have to spend the night.  The shop hadn't called me to say my car was ready, I  assumed it would be ready by the end of the day and it almost was.  So there I was stranded, exhausted, with no one to blame, but myself.  I also had no one to call.
Please don't say, "Call a friend... Call Uber..."  I know I could have made those calls, but instead I decided to sit and wait however long it would be for a freakin' bus to come down Highland.
It took at least 20.  I sat and played Soda Crush feeling a little sorry for myself.  It was just one of those little moments when I thought, "Golly, it sure would be nice if I could just call my boyfriend and say,'Honey, come pick me up.'"  ...But I don't.

Such are the Trials of Man Solo; when unexpected inconveniences arise, we have to deal with them on our own.   I don't mean this to sound like I sat on a bus bench crying into my iPad, it was just a little thought and a little twinge, and I certainly wouldn't jump into a relationship, just so I would have someone to pick me up on short notice.   In actuality, had I warned a friend that I might be calling for a ride, I might have been more inclined to call someone and inconvenience them for a ride.  Also, I don't want to surrender to Uber or Lyft, just yet.  So there I am, sitting on that bench for half an hour, waiting for a bus that seems to never be arriving and it could have been sad, except that I had my Soda Crush and a great view of the guy still repairing my car, whom I was crushing on on Tuesday.   I might have felt guilty if I had a boyfriend...

DISCLAIMER: My crush is not the fella pictured above. (I wouldn't say no, though)

2 comments:

  1. This reminds me of walking home with you after rehearsals at Ysleta. I cherish those memories! Those were very long walks and we had so much time to talk.

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  2. Right? It's a good thing we didn't have Candy Crush, back then!

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