Cathy in the Wright

To Margaret: The Rest Of The Story...

Mom and I waited in the parking lot for about another 15 minutes after you left. A large, flat-bed tow truck pulled into the lot, and a good-looking young man got out, hung up his cell phone, and took out his tools. He had the door open in about a minute and a half.

The minute the door was open, the alarm went off. No way to stop it except with the alarm button on the remote. And that's still in the trunk. No problem. Hit the Trunk button and...nothing. Didn't work. I had a whole string of brand new profanities for the Chevy engineeers at this point. But hey! I'll just pop the hatch where the roof folds when you put it down and reach the trunk through there.

Foiled again. More profanities. The tow truck guy tells me these switches are probably electronic and I'll need a lock smith. The hell I will. I can't figure out how to get seats to fold forward (The VP later explained about a lever behind the headrest - again *&$%# you, Chevy engineers - you wouldn't want to put it around the base of the seat like every other car) but there was enough of a gap that I could reach my hand into the front of the trunk. I couldn't see the keys, but I knew they were towards the back corner. I asked Mr. Tow Truck Guy for his long metal bar with the hooked ends and started fishing. Dragged a bunch of stuff out of the way, saw the keys, and finessed them to within arm's reach.

Voila! The alarm had gone off by this point so I'm sure everyone in Plymouth could hear me yell when I finally snagged the keychain. I told Mr. TTG that I'd give him a hug if I wasn't so dirty and sweaty. He said, "Well, I"m kinda sweaty myself after riding in the truck all day." We settled on a handshake and some profuse thanks on my part.

I made it home without further incident.

And yes, I did call The VP and confess before the tow truck got there. Fortunately for me, the boys were yelling and hollering in the background, and he was too distracted to pay much attention to my dilemma. Good job, guys! He simply said, "Okay. Call me when you're on the road." When I got home, he added that he might just pin the keys to my shirt next week.

Thanks again for giving me a ride to Joe and Susan's house and for bringing me back to the car and waiting with me. I owe you big time. Dave - you are NOT to be upset with her for forgetting her cell phone. Mom, thanks for driving out to keep me company in the parking lot. And Joe and Susan...thanks for letting me barge in and use your phone.

By the way...no one else at soccer needs to know about this next Sunday. M'kay? Especially those pesky Germans.

Posted by Cathy at September 11, 2005 09:16 PM