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I have had a flat tire while driving exactly twice in my life, and both times have been in the last two months. That's not the weirdest part, though! I will now tell you the weirdest part. Keep in mind that I mean while I, myself, was driving, as opposed to other times when I was a back seat child passenger on a road trip or whatever. No, I mean flat tires with me behind the wheel: two, and here's what's weird.
First, in May, Brian went to Mexico. I was still in Phoenix for two more weeks. On my last Thursday in Phoenix, there I was scooting along the 101 when I heard a really loud noise which I thought was the engine dying, turned off the radio, pulled off the (luckily close) exit, and only then realized I had a flat tire that was flopping and grinding along. Luckily, I had joined Triple-A upon my acquisition of said car after returning from Korea to the U.S., and I called them to come help me out. While I waited in the hot, dark desert night on the side of the freeway in lonely 7th St/Loop 101 north Phoenix, I received a text message from Brian from a new phone number: "This is my Mexican phone!" To which I of course replied something along the lines of "Can't talk right now, stranded by the highway with a flat waiting for triple-A."
Fast forward to July. I'm in Mexico, and as you will recall from recent blog posts, I have been forced here to learn to drive a stick shift (wheeeee!) and I perform this task for five round-trips per week. And wouldn't you know it? On Monday afternoon, almost back from that day's duties, as we crawled along in stop-and-go (mostly stop) highway traffic (I stayed in 1st gear! that's how much "stop" there was), the driver in the car to our right suddenly waved until he got our attention, then did the whole pointing down to the ground below your car thing while mouthing something unintelligible, which is the universal symbol of "You've got a flat tire!"
But here's what's so weird: I just got my Mexican cell phone number that day! Finally. Isn't that bizarre-o?!?!?! The only two days ever that Brian and I have ever got our Mexican cell phones are also the only two days ever that I have ever been driving and got flat tires.
What does it all mean?!
Thursday, July 19, 2012
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1 comment:
I love the Spanish translation "Tienes una llanta punchada."
When we did the San Juanico project much of the equipment (wind turbines, solar panels and racks, inverter, electrical panels) was stored at the APS Yucca power plant in Yuma, Az until it had been accumulated and was ready to be shipped to the plant, on two Mexican trucks. We held several of our progress meetings there, since it was a good half-way point and the CFE peeps could see what they were getting! On one occasion, when the CFE showed up, they asked if we could help them replace a tire, because they had a llanta punchada. Of course the Yucca maintenance crew was happy to help out. But I thought "punchada = flat" is so cool. Ing Pepe
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