Brain Fart

Have you ever heard of it? It's where you think of something and before you can even verbalize it, the thought escapes you. - A brain fart has just occurred.- That's how I have felt about journaling lately. I have ideas for entries but being able to actually form the ideas into words escapes me, then the moment passes and I feel like I can't go back. After all, what happened last weekend has now become ancient history. Right?

Well, today I am saying "fug it" and I'm just going to pretend like it just happened yesterday so I can get it out.

I got off work early on Friday. I was filled with excitement. It was the day that Andi was arriving from Indiana. But first, I had to make a trek to Manhattan Beach to check out a bed that I found on Craigslist. My plan was to leave right at 1:00 o'clock so I would beat the weekend traffic. I had a truck rented for Sunday so if I liked the bed I wanted to pick it up on Sunday. Saturday I planned on hanging with Trish and Andi, so Friday was the only day. I couldn't get in touch with the woman when it was time for me to leave. I already had directions but I didn't want to just show up because there was a possibility that she had another buyer and Manhattan Beach is no short haul from where I live but it's a bit closer to where I work.

I had to run a check over to one of our other locations so I left a message for her to call me on my cell phone. She called an hour later as I pulled my car into my drive-way at home. I told her since I was home, I needed to gather some stuff together since I wouldn't be returning until late the next day. It was now 2 p.m. The weekend traffic would be building fast, so I threw some things in a bag and hit the road within a half hour. I learned quickly that I was too late. By 3 p.m., I called her whining that I just wouldn't be able to make it. The traffic was already too congested and I had barely travelled five miles from my home. I decided to make a change in plans and headed over to Trish's place instead. The plan was to do some unpacking before picking up Andi later that night with a quick pitstop to train a dogwalker who was taking over a job for Trish that weekend.

However, the best laid plans don't always go as planned. We didn't unpack one thing! And, time to head out came all too quickly. But, first we decided to stop and get coffee at the Coffee Bean. The first ordeal of the night had begun. Don't ever try ordering your favorite Starbucks drink at the Coffee Bean. Of course, mine has a little twist. I like it wet and lukewarm. But, still, how hard can it be to replicate? Heck, based on Trish's ordering mishap, I'd venture to say that you shouldn't order your favorite Coffee Bean drink there either! A Double Vanilla Latte might just get you a tea instead of a coffee.

We shook it off and headed on our way. Next stop - gas. As we pulled away from the gas station Trish noticed what felt like a flat tire. We got out of the car and sure enough the passenger-side rear tire was making a hissing sound. It's been a long time but I've changed a tire, or two, in my time. So, I gladly dug in. It was slow going. At first, I couldn't even figure out how to get the jack out of the compartment. Trish actually had to pull out the owner's manual so I could figure it out. As I set about to get the jack together and placed under the car, Trish decided to be useful by removing the spare from the rear of the CRV. She needed a little help with getting the bolts loose but worked at getting the tire off as I studied the owner's manual for proper placement of the jack.

I'm not quite sure what happened but something caused Trish to smash her finger and the tire went falling to the ground as Trish screamed that her finger was sliced to the bone. She was bleeding. I looked around for a towel or napkin or something I could wrap her finger with but came up short. So, I ran down the block to the "Roach Coach" I saw parked by the gas station. I begged them for some napkins. I wasn't sure if they understood me since they looked at me like I was crazed. I started making hand gestures in the shape of a square as I searched my memory bank for what the Spanish word for napkin is. The only thing I came up with was "toalla,." which I knew meant rag/towel. That wouldn't work! (I have since learned the word for napkin is "servilleta." I think it will come in handy the next time I'm at a Mexican Restaurant since I like muchas servilletas when I eat.) Luckily, in my mania the woman understood what I wanted and handed me a bunch of napkins. I thanked her and ran back to Trish crouched on the curb in pain.

I wrapped Trish's fingers with the napkin and told her I needed her to keep her hand up at least above her heart. I worked up the courage to take a look. It's been a long time since I've seen a gaping wound. I wasn't sure if I was able to deal with it on a friend. The last thing we needed was for me to pass out. I slowly removed the napkin to the whincing of poor Trishy. I told her there was blood but I didn't see any cuts. It seemed that she had smashed her finger good though. (And, that she did! It now appears that she will lose the nail.) If you've ever smashed your finger, you can understand the pain she was in. It's a throbbing to the bone kind of pain that lasts for days. I asked her if she had any pain relievers. She told me where to find one in her bag and I administered what I thought was Advil or something similar. Ha!

But, I'll have to stop with the saga of our night for now. This entry has taken long enough. I need to start my day.