Watch out, she gonna blow!

You know those days when you are exhausted and want nothing more than to get home and lie down in your bed, but the rest of the world decides it wants to keep you away from home as long as possible? Well I had one of those days. But life decided to keep me from home in a quite unique and entertaining way.



Ok I admit it wasn't quite a nuclear explosion like the picture, there wasn't actually any fire at all........just the threat of it. LOL



Just across the street from my work there is a gas station that I love going to. Their prices are always lower but especially I like the people who work there.
This one guy has figured out I always get $20 worth. Every time I go I find myself hoping he is working just so we can have our little joke. He starts giggling every time he sees me pull up and greets me with his Spanish accent, "Twendy dollas right?"
It's gotten to the point that I look forward to going just to hear him say it.

Monday night I got off work and wanted nothing more than to go home and sleep. I grumbled a bit when I saw my gas gauge on E; knowing that I had to run to the ATM to get $20, then go get gas delaying me a good 20 minutes from making my way home.
So I strutted along, finally making it into the gas station, saw my fave guy was not there, grumbled a bit more, then put on my half awake happy face and told the clerk I wanted $20 worth.
They young guy put in the money, and reached to put the nozzle into my tank.
In seemingly slow motion, a young lady came running out of the store, waving her hands and wailing, "Nooooo!"
Then there was a click sound, as the clerk started the pump, then a spraying sound, then I saw for a tiny glimpse of gas spraying through the air then the pump stopping.
The gal ran over in a panic and told us, "Some guy drove off with the spout still in the tank. He ripped the hose off the machine. I was trying to fix it but it kept coming off. So I just went inside to get a cone to say out of order."

The guy then reached up to the top and tried to mess with the hose to get it screwed onto the machine. When he did, gas came spraying out again. He did this three times before the girl screamed at him, "Stop, stop it! Stop trying, you're just getting gas every where. Cancel the order and switch her over to tank 10!"
He pulled the nozzle out, reached over, and put another one in.
A total of $1.79 in gas had sprayed out of the first one. As my tank filled up from the not broken machine, the girl shuffled back and forth grabbing her head nervously. The guy and I both remained silent, with expressions of trying hard not to laugh. Just then gas started trickling out on it's own from the broken hose.
I poked my head out the window and asked if I could get out and help some how. The guy said with horror, "No! There's gas every where! Opening your door could make a spark. It only takes a tiny spark and this whole block will be in flames! Just stay as still as you can." So I got myself comfy and slurped my chicken noodle soup and watched the rest unfold.

Quickly all 5 employees surrounded my truck trying to figure out how to stop it.
One female got on the phone and called the owner. He instructed her how to kill the machine and said he'd be down in a few minutes.
Once the machine was off, and the gas had stopped dripping, all 5 nervously giggled with relief. Then another spoke up, "What about the gas that's everywhere?"
The first girl pointed to the girl holding the phone and barked, "Call the fire department!"
At this point I finally broke, and couldn't hold it in any longer. I let out a loud laugh and had to ask, "Is this a joke?"
The panic was very obvious in her voice when she replied, "Ma'am, please stay calm. Everything is going to be alright. Don't panic. The fire department is going to help."
I could not stop my laughter, so I covered my mouth with my hands to try and hide it.
The girl spoke on the phone and told them what had happened. Just then I heard a fire truck siren coming down the street. I thought to myself, "Goodness what have I gotten into?!" With the image of a bunch of firemen surrounding my truck in my head.


I found out later the fire truck was unrelated, being a call for a customer with chest pains in a nearby restaurant; but talk about funny timing!
The employee repeated what the fire station said. They said the gas had most likely evaporated already, but to spray the area with water to be safe.

The 4 employees walked into the store to grab buckets and fill up with water. The original gas clerk stood by my truck, with bright red cheeks, and laughed with a near hysterical tone, "I'm so sorry ma'am. This has been a very weird day."
It took a few minutes before the 4 came out with their buckets of water and stood in line to splash my truck and surrounding ground. They all sighed with relief then the girl said her apologies to me and said it was ok for me to leave now.
As I began to drive away, I shouted out the window, "I hope your day gets better!"
I only made it about another mile down the road before I had to pull over because my tears of laughter made it too hard to see. My side ached from laughing so hard, as the tune played in my head, "When you least expect it, you're elected, you're the star today. Smile, you're on candid camera!"