INFINITE GRATITUDE: MD TOWING

Gentle Readers . . . and Maxwell,

I know I promised you a second movie weekend today, but life intervened. I had a crazy experience yesterday. I did something plenty stupid, but it turned into an opportunity for me to be amazed by the determination of a human being and to be filled with gratitude

Sometimes stuff happens with cars. 

This is not my vehicle, but I wish I had photos of what happened with my Nissan Sentra yesterday.

I did something yesterday afternoon that had me cursing; you do not want to know what came out of my sweet little mouth.

Remember how I told you we had so much rain last weekend that my backyard turned into a lake? I was complaining about the noise from the frogs (see HERE).

I have a detached garage. It's in my backyard. I like putting my car in the garage. It stays cleaner and cooler. But to get to the garage, I have to get through a very narrow part of my driveway that includes a particularly narrow section where the chimney on my house sticks out on one side and my neighbor's fence is on the other side. So I like to go down my driveway nose first.

To get out nose first, I back out of the garage and pull into my backyard. Then I backup onto the concrete next to the garage and I'm ready to roll.

After all the rain, I pondered whether it was wise to drive into the yard. Being a somewhat foolhardy soul, I chanced it. And it worked three times. 

All I needed was one time that it didn't work, and that time was yesterday. I got stuck in the mud in my own backyard.

When I realized I absolutely could not get the car out, I opened the door and stepped into the water, my cute little feet in adorable sandals sinking into the mud. 

Then I did what any intelligent person would do: I burst into tears. A lot has been going on in my neck of the blog lately, and I reached the end of my rope. I called my friend Carol, and sobbed to her the story of what I had done. Don't you have Triple A? she asked.

No! But I have Allstate Roadside Assistance, I told her. It's a good thing you asked me because I completely forgot that I had it.

So I called Allstate Roadside Assistance. They connected me to MD Towing. Still crying, I told Alex at MD what I had done. He said he had a guy who was only a mile away from me, and he would send him right over. I said, That's great, but there's no way to get a tow truck down my driveway. Alex said not to worry.

Within a few minutes, George arrived, wearing a shirt that said Tony (but I checked later and learned his name is definitely George). George comforted me as I wailed about my troubles. Then George tried valiantly to back his tow truck down my driveway. There was no way. The space was too small. 

George took measurements and called someone with a slightly smaller truck. That's when Michael arrived. Michael tried valiantly to back his truck down my driveway. No dice. He tried and tried, and he thought and thought, but finally they had to call the office and say they couldn't do it. They suggested that I look for someone with a small pickup truck or jeep. I didn't know anyone with a small pickup or jeep, but I started calling and texting a number of friends to ask for advice.

Then the phone rang. It was Alex from MD towing again. He said, I have a man coming to you with a smaller truck. He's leaving right now.

Pretty soon, Michael returned with a tire service truck. He brought Scott with him. Scott got out and helped Michael back the tire service truck slowly down the driveway and through my narrow gate. When Michael stopped, he couldn't open the door of the truck because my deck was in the way. So, naturally, Michael climbed out the window, balanced himself on the deck rail, climbed onto the back of the truck, and hopped down behind it. He needed to move the truck a bit to have it in just the right position, so he hopped back on the truck, balanced on the deck rail with the grace of a tightrope walker, and climbed back into the window of the truck.

He got the truck exactly where he wanted it, climbed back out, and hooked a chain to my car. Scott got in the car and put it in reverse, stepping gently on the accelerator, while Michael jumped up and down on the taut chain. 

The car moved a little.

Michael tightened the chain a bit; he and Scott repeated the procedure.

The car moved a little more. 

Then Michael did something completely unexpected. He grabbed the chain with both hands, yanked on it, and jerked the car free of the mud. 

I could. not. believe it.

With my car back on the concrete, Michael slowly took the truck down the driveway, with Scott again guiding him. Then Scott straightened out my car so I could drive out nose first.

For now, my car will stay in the driveway. I have some ideas about what to do with backyard. I don't have a place where a drain can be put in, but I've been getting suggestions from people about fill dirt and gravel. 

By the way, George was shocked at the amount of water in my yard. Michael explained it easily. This is Murray Hill! he said. It's a swamp. These are my old stomping grounds.

So that's the story of what happened to me yesterday. It's the story of an unfortunate experience with a very happy ending. I was amazed by the determination of an angel named Michael. That man was going to take care of my car if it killed him.

And nobody from MD Towing laughed at me or made fun of me. They said they'd seen far worse things. 

But now, I'd like something from you. I'm going to post an online review of MD Towing that will go on their Web site. And I'd appreciate it if you would 1+ this post and tweet about it. Or if you can take the time and you have unlimited minutes, please call 904 838 5284. You'll get MD Towing. Tell them you read about them on my blog, and thank them for helping your friend Janie. 

Today, I am filled with gratitude for Michael and MD Towing and for the persistence of human beings.

Infinities of love,

Janie Junebug