I had forgotten that my vehicle inspections were due this month (January) so today I was in a rush to first off, find a place that could do both of them today, and secondly get going early enough so that I could get both of them done. I grabbed the envelopes out of my vehicles so I could inventory the stuff and make sure I had everything that was needed, and started making calls.
The first place I called was the dealership, and they could not get me in till mid-week. Not an option. I then called the place down south that had done them originally and found that they were no longer doing them, but they gave me the name of a place just south of them that they highly recommended. I called and told them the story and they said they would work me in.
I headed down there to get one vehicle done and discovered that when cleaning out the envelope I had taken out the current insurance card. I was miffed at myself since they had been so kind and it was a hour round trip to get back to the house and get the current card which was laying on my desk. Of course, what happened on the way back on the narrow two-lane road? I get behind a person that was traveling at half the 30MPH speed limit and did not pull over to let me go by (most times people driving slowly on the island will). I took a deep breath – OK, many of them on the drive back to the house – and told myself, everything is fine, it will all work out (still slightly miffed though).
I grabbed the card and headed back along the same road. What did I follow all the way? A school bus that stopped what seemed like 10,000 times to let children off which meant I had to stop behind the bus and wait. Again I kept telling myself, everything is fine, it will all work out. I was more concerned about messing up the people at the shop who were so kind to work me in when they really didn’t have any openings in their schedule.
I finally got there, the inspection went off without a hitch and I headed back to pick up my truck. Yes, if you are thinking ahead, behind another school bus that stopped it seemed like 100,000,000 times.
Finally got the truck and headed back down (behind another school bus that made 100 billion stops of course). Finally got there and while waiting for the guy to finish all the paperwork, we were both chuckling about my bad traffic karma, and he said, “this is the wrong island to be in a hurry on” and I agreed with him.
There have been a number of times I’ve headed off in a hurry and the Island has dropped anchor on me and slowed me down. Luckily I’m not the hurrying type anymore, and the only reason I was sort of miffed was that I was putting others out due in part to my inattention.
Moral of the story: slow down, breathe and enjoy life.
Enjoyable, in the way that reading about someone else’s problems usually is!
Seems to me the other lesson is, don’t worry too much about putting others out because of what happens to you. Chances are, the delay is part of their pattern as well.
Think of it, though. You’ve been an islander long enough, now, to need to do things like renew your motor vehicle inspections. That’s a long time without Wyoming-style snowstorms.
Yes, everyone who has lived here for very long knows that delays are part of life here. Everything is “I’ll meet you around 5-ish.”
I was concerned about putting the nice people at the shop out after they made their very gracious accommodation, but as you say, they understood.
Perhaps there is another moral to the story: Make sure you have your ducks in a row before heading out.
Not having to shovel snow has been a welcome change.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KZi-aV0VTk
Very pleased it all worked out OK!
JofIndia, thanks for that link. I haven’t heard that song in a long time and it certainly is a good song to hum when living on the Island.
i like your truck story better then my car story.
i felt i was with you that day, lol.
Spent something like 3 years in a country where we used to recognize the new arrivals from the way they still seemed to be racing to their work, grumbling over this and that… and indeed, all appointments were xx-ish with a margin of up to an hour 🙂 It does wonders for your sense of humor. And in the end it always comes together – as shows your story 🙂
Ah the small (in retrospect) annoyances of living! As I recall, things do take longer in Hawaii, even when not in back of a school bus. I had to laugh at Frank’s comment about how reading about others’ problems is “enjoyable” hehe 🙂