Future superstars

Ok, So today was Sunday. I was bored and spent time downloading some of the videos off of the video camera to the camera. This is one of the gems that I found. I wish it didn't take so long to upload these things, because there are some hilarious movies that the kids have made over the last little while. I love how Jake goes into his Pop-Locking Robot routine towards the end.

While I was organizing the computer files, I received a phone call from Tim, telling me that He and his Mom were stranded on the off ramp to the freeway. I guess Kathy wanted to check the accuracy of the on board computer in the Excursion to see how truthfull it is. We now know that if the gauge says empty, but the computer swears up and down that you still have another 25 miles to go, we will now trust the gas gauge. Normally this would be something that would tick everyone off; Kathy for running out of gas, Me for having to come and get her, Tim (Mr. patience) for having to wait. But for some reason nobody was to bent out of shape over it.

After getting my call from Tim I grabbed a gas can and started towards her when the phone starts ringing. "Hey Ron" the voice says, "Did you know Kathy is broke down on the freeway?".

"Yes, I am on my way to help her, she just ran out of gas." I say. The phone rings again, but a different voice is on the line, "Hey Ron, Your wife's car seems to have broken down on the off ramp to the freeway". "Yes, I know, I am on my way to get her, Thanks" I say. One more time, the phone rings, again a different voice, "Ron, I think your wife has ran out of gas on the freeway, do you need some gas cans or a tow strap." "No, but thanks, I think we can get it.". I pull up over the freeway overpass and see Kathy's car along with another car parked towards hers on the off ramp, both have their hazard lights on. I put my hazards on, just as a cop pulls up behind me and turns on his lights. Jake now thinks that we might be in trouble with the law. The officer informs me that I can't park where I am at, I explain what is going on we make arrangements as to how I can safely get out of this predicament. Bruce King was the guy in the white SUV and was nice enough to pull in to make sure she was alright. I get to Kathy's car and she explains that several other people from the ward had also offered her assistance. She is so funny, because instead of being upset, she is more embarrassed, especially after I tell her about the all points bulletin that had gone out. Since I knew she was really empty, I decided to go back and get another can of gas just to make sure that we could get it started. On my way back I fully expected to see a news hellicopeter and the channell 8 news crew on site. Instead, as I pulled up, a young man in another car jumped out to see if he could help. I explained to the kid offering assistance, that we were ok and had just ran out of gas. He told me that his dad was Russ McDonald from our ward, and had seen Kathy broken down. He was told to stop and make sure that we didn't need anything, and offered to let us push our Excursion to his house a short distance away. By this time, I had the 2nd can of gas (diesel) in the incapacitated car and was ready to start it up. After climbing in and turning the ignition switch on and off, and on and off,(this is not the first time we have ran out of gas), it fired up and we were off to the gas station to blow $100.00. When we got to the station the guy in the car next to us looked over, smiled and said "man, that was a bad place to break down." Kathy laughed an embarrassed laugh and quietly said to me, "you know that this is your fault, you should have gassed up yesterday."

Ok, this is the story of the night, but I can't have a story without at least pointing out the lesson learned. The lesson learned is that as a member of our church, there is a huge extended family, that silently looks out for other family members. This extends to many of the things that we go through on a daily basis, whether it is running out of gas, helping out when another family member is sick, picking up kids when we are running behind schedule, or going out to show support for the boys and girls in the ward that are involved in sports or other activities. In this crazy city that we live in, and during this crazy time of economic uncertainty, there are those that we have ties with that will look after us, and hopefully allow us to help them when they are in need. When I hear in the news how self centered we have become as a society, I am extremely grateful to know how blessed we are to belong to such a great church filled with those that are willing to take the time to care for others.

The other lesson I learned..... It was my fault, I should have gassed up the day before.