There Just Weren't Enough Suckers

to throw in the dirt.

I woke up last Thursday ready to get some work done.  Jason and the kids loaded our trailer with debris from the building demolished by a tree that fell and other trash and I decided I would haul it to the dump.  Brittany secured the load including a twin size mattress.  Storms were due later in the day so I was anxious to get on our way.  The dump is about 20 miles from our home and I drove cautiously and stopped multiple times to tie down the mattress as the wind gusts were pushing the mattress around.  About an hour after we left out we pulled into the dump.  The first true challenge of the day was my having to back the trailer in.  I don't back trailers but managed to while 2 semi trucks waited patiently.  They waved and thanked me for the entertainment and I'm sure I could hear their laughter miles down the road. 

Well, we unloaded and treated ourselves to Subway for lunch then hit I-30 to get on home.  We made it about 3 miles and the truck died.  I pulled it off the road, laid my head on the steering wheel and sighed and said something I don't remember.  My children say is was a bad word but I truly don't remember.  After investigating under the hood and calling Jason it was determined that I ran out of gas.  I know, I know,  you are all wondering why I didn't know that.  Well, the gauge said half a tank.  HALF A TANK!!!  Fortunately we had a full gas can in the truck (blessing of being married to a race car driver) and we were on our way after risking our lives while trucker after trucker tried to see how close they could get to us on the highway.

We commenced down the road happily.  The kids teased me about saying a bad word and we were having a good time when the truck started bouncing all over the interstate.  We were doing 70 and I looked in the rear view mirror to see the trailer fishtailing all over the road.  I didn't know what happened.  My first thought was someone hit us, then I thought the trailer came unhooked and the chains were pulling it, then I thought "Please let me get this off the road without wrecking".  I got off the road, got out of the truck and the left rear tire had blown.  My heart was pounding so loud I think the truckers at the dump heard it.  I called my sweet husband and told him "I Quit" and I was going to some beach.  He was on his way to help me and I got out of the truck again to evaluate the damage.  When I did it started thundering and raining.  Yep....that's how my day was going.  I stood beside the road, looked at the sky and said "BRING IT ON!!!".  It was my Forrest Gump moment. 

My knight in shining armor arrived, changed the tire and I gave him the keys to the truck and got into his car.  We went home, sat on the back porch while the sun came out and birds sang.  I thought all was right in the world again....until supper.  I had the oven going, two burners on the stove in the full swing of cooking as I had taken all my aggression out on chopping onions and celery and life was good until the power went out.  Yep...the power went out.  Jason hooked up the camp stove so I could finish supper then I shortly went to bed.  The power came back about 5 hours later.