Tires, Rocks and Bitter Coffee

* I took Neil's truck in to Discount Tire for what I thought was going to be an expensive visit because his front right tire had a bulge in it that was not supposed to be there. The tire guy came out to take a look and said, "That's just great." I gasped and then he said, "I'll tell you what we're going to do for you, we're going to give you four brand new tires for the cost of the warranty because these tires have been defective and while nothing bad has happened with them, we want our customers to be safe." And so, I got four brand new tires for only $38.09. Best part, the tires I had would have only been good for one more year and to replace them would have cost about $400.

I realize that it is a little bit sad to be thrilled about getting free tires. It's a sign that I am, unfortunately, grown up. Back when I was cool, I would have laughed at the girl-woman opening her eyes wide, looking at Mr. Discount Tire and saying, "This is such good news! You made my day!" (OK I must not be entirely uncool, because it's still a little funny to me that I did that.)

* While I was waiting for my four new tires to be installed, I decided to go to the Walgreens that's right across the street from the tire store. It was hot out and I wanted a bottle of water. So, I headed out the door and started walking down the hill. (Discount Tire is situated on a big hill) To get to the sidewalk, I had to walk down a too-steep grassy slope and then traverse a field of boulders. Then once I crossed the street I had to use my best rock climbing skills to descend the steep rocky wall and get to Walgreens (which happens to be in a valley of sorts). All of this made me realize how completely non-pedestrian friendly American cities have become. The designers of that corner of commerce clearly didn't even think about the poor stranded driver waiting for new tires... they couldn't imagine why anyone would want to cross eight lanes of traffic and climb down two steep hills only to have to climb up again. This is a testament to a) bad planning and b) the laziness of our society... we're completely reliant on cars.

* I was going to write about the terribly bitter coffee I drank this afternoon at work.. but it makes my tongue hurt to think about it.