***APOLOGIES: ***
As I began writing the next section of my tale, I realized that I made a mistake in my timeline (for those of you who have been regularly following my yarn). Oops! It looks like I have some editing to do! It will all get worked out in the final draft, but I leave you with the tale as it sits today. Tell me if you pick up on my glitch.
~___*___~
The sun was
shining. The road was smooth and ran long in front of us. Conversation flowed
with an easy banter back and forth. Few awkward moments interrupted the journey. Today, I was
hitching a ride with a big rig and life was good. The driver even bought me
lunch, when we stopped about an hour into our journey. The memory of my
previous drunken ride faded out behind me, as the kilometers clicked by on our
way to the coast.
That is, until a
worried look crossed the driver’s face. And then he started to gear down. In
the uncertainty of what was going on, silence took over the cab. When the tires
finally crunched onto the side of the road, we slowly came to a stop. It
appeared that my blue skies were now marred by a nasty cloud that amounted to
truck failings. In case you were wondering, when an AZ truck has mechanical
problems, the driver is usually pretty much powerless to do much about it. More
often than not, the drivers are not mechanics and the engines are a little
awkward to manipulate. My driver was no different. Even if he knew what was
wrong with the truck, he was unable to fix it. He was now stuck, until such
time as a mechanic showed up on the scene. Despite the presence of a CB to call
in a request for help, he would have to wait several hours before he
would be mobile again. It appeared that it was time to switch rides again.
While the truck
troubles were not his fault, my driver felt horrible about abandoning me on the
side of the road. Perhaps he had forgotten that that was where he picked me up
in the first place, but he now insisted that he help to get me another ride. He advised me that when the sun went down in the
desert, the temperature would drop significantly. There were not that many hours left in the day and he bemoaned
the idea of me stuck out in the cold after dark. I
figured that he would not steer me wrong, so when he CBed the truck that was
following him to stop and pick me up, I was grateful for his assistance. He had
already done so much for me and now it looked like he would get me all the way
to the coast, despite the inability of transporting me there personally. I also
figured that this might prevent another drunk driver from careening me off of
the side of the road, so agreed to his plan.
Within a
short span, I was hauling my back pack down out of the first truck and loading
it into a second one. This time there were two drivers, but at least another
woman now joined me as a passenger in the truck. She gladly pushed her parcel
up ahead of me and took a seat in the back of the cab on the long bunk with the
second driver. I lucked into the passenger seat to share conversation with my
newest driver of the day. By the time we were rolling again, there wasn’t much
day left though. It was enough that I was moving West again though.
hey is that the same lady that joined you last time? smiles...hey you are keeping moving so...
ReplyDelete@Brian: What?! Oh, her. Yes! Now I have to figure out how to smooth that out so that it will flow again. Not going to happen tonight though. I did meet her on the road though & she will travel with me into the next chapter. I think she may have entered the story a little prematurely last time though. Bah! A writer's prerogative to craft the story as they see fit, right? (heh, heh)
ReplyDeleteDo you know what I always LOVE about your stories?
ReplyDeleteYou have such an AMAZING way of making us feel as though we are there with you. I can always so clearly, SEE, HEAR, and FEEL everything that's going on.
"When the tires finally crunched onto the side of the road, we slowly came to a stop."
I could HEAR that 'crunch.'
Great post, Katherine! You could just write a book on all the fascinating people you met during your time in Africa!
Have a great day....X
@Ron: And do you know what I LOVE about you Ron? That you always make me smile. Every time you pop by to say hello. You are so supportive and positive & know how to say just the right thing.
ReplyDelete(You didn't even quip about my timeline gaff that I have yet to fix)Thank YOU!!!
(((Ron)))
I can almost smell the diesel.
ReplyDelete@Monkey Man: I remember the rocking of the rig on the road. I have to tell you that it is Not my preferred method of transport.
ReplyDelete