I don’t know what it is with our crazy dogs. First, we had Sandy chasing race cars. Now, our other dog Scarlet attempts to play football in the house!
Our dog wants to play football
You need new brakes
So I go to the dealership to get an oil change, and after about an hour, a woman comes to the waiting room and says, “Robert?” I acknowledged her and she walks over to me. “Looks like you need new brakes. It would still pass inspection, but it’s really close,” she said.
Ugh. I only have like 12,000 miles on the car, so I’m a bit baffled. “How much?” I asked. “Around $200, plus the oil change,” she replied.
I told her to go ahead, frustrated because I really do not have $250+ to spare this week. Plus, I got this car so I could avoid paying hundreds of dollars in repair bills… at least for a couple of years, anyway….
About ten minutes later, an announcement over the p-a system. “Mr. Monek to the service desk please!” Boy, that was fast, I thought…. and then I thought, maybe they found another problem.
So I walk downstairs to the service desk, fearing a four figure disaster and wondering if I have enough space on my credit card to handle a thousand dollar bill, and then the woman gives me a curious look.
“You’re Mr. Monek?” she asked nervously.
“Yes,” I replied.
“Oh no,” she said in such a way to make my heart to sink. Could it be even worse than I imagined? Maybe the engine needs to be replaced?
“What’s wrong?” I anxiously asked.
“You’re the wrong Robert!” she said. I gave her a puzzled look. “I sold the brakes to the wrong guy,” she said. “There’s nothing wrong with your brakes. Your car is ready.”
Relief came over me like a wave washing away garbage on the beach.
“But if you’d like to pay for the other guy’s brakes,” chimed in another worker.
“Hey, in the spirit of Christmas, why not?” I responded with a smile.
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How to wear out your dog
Our dog, Sandy, has become fascinated with one of the toys that Santa left for us. It may serve a second purpose as a way to tire out our Sandy!
Waiting for me?
Carrying a tray of cookies to work today, I stood waiting for the subway as the crowd gathered around. As the train arrived and the door opened, I paused assuming the crowd would rush into the car and I would follow. Instead, much to my surprise (I even hesitated when one man directed his arm for me to enter), they waited for me to go first. Perhaps the holiday spirit is really in the air…. or perhaps they wanted some cookies.
The lost credit card
Those who wake before the sun know Dunkin’ Donuts is crowded as we wait for our trains. A man held up the line today when, after ordering his coffee, he said, “Listen, I’ve got to tell you something…” The man proceeded to explain that he came in around 7:00 on Monday morning. He was trying to order a dozen donuts, but “the people who work here didn’t speak English. I kept trying to explain that I just want a dozen donuts,” he said. Where is this going, I wondered.
He eventually got the donuts, but then he paid for them. “I had a gift card holder, you know a cardboard thing. I had two gift cards and my credit card, but the gift cards had expired. So they used my credit card, but when I got to work I realized I didn’t have the card holder or my credit card,” he said.
He then explained that he came back last night, but the workers said that they had not seen it. So he went home, when he realized that he had not asked them to check the garbage. “If you wouldn’t mind?” he asked.
Keep in mind that the line is growing while all this is going on, but the clerk agreed to take a look. So he looks in the trash under the counter, goes into the back room, goes up to the front register. Nothing.
“Well, I canceled the card anyway. I was just curious. It was just so confusing because they didn’t speak English. I just wanted a dozen donuts. Thanks for checking,” the man said, and then he walked out presumably to catch his train.
On the counter, he left his cup of coffee.
