tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19178228.post3349268011970388205..comments2023-08-26T12:08:50.270-04:00Comments on A Right Gapesnest: MY WTF Moment and the Idea of MarginM. Lubbershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13689096558796490683noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19178228.post-12489257508041658852011-01-31T13:22:31.408-05:002011-01-31T13:22:31.408-05:00Oh, a digital display! That would be much better.
...Oh, a digital display! That would be much better.<br /><br />My older sister also agreed that she worried excessively about the fuel light, and our dad was king of trying to drive just a few more miles and running out of gas just short of the gas station. Then we'd have to get out and push. <br /><br />I'm sure we're warping Eleanor in entirely different ways. I'll try very hard to not do the same things my parents did, and find other ways to freak her out. Only time will tell ....M. Lubbershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13689096558796490683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19178228.post-10253683692169814152011-01-27T10:50:27.445-05:002011-01-27T10:50:27.445-05:00Oh, man. What a day!
First off, kudos for draggin...Oh, man. What a day!<br /><br />First off, kudos for dragging yourself out of bed that early. That's about the time I wake up, think, "Screw this! I don't have to be anywhere until 8!" and go back to sleep.<br /><br />I can empathize with the panic that sets in when the "low fuel" light comes on. I think I've shared this story before, but I can trace my fear of running out of gas to a family vacation in 1985. We were going to the Grand Canyon, and I swear that my dad was on driving on E through most of the desert. He claimed that he had plenty of gas, and that the needle only looked like it was on E because of the angle of vision from the passenger side. That didn't stop my mom from freaking out about it for a good twenty miles, which made me and my sister understandably nervous. Twenty-six years later, and here we are: I can still remember the moment we eventually pulled up to the gas station, which was actually just about to close for the day. Doh! <br /><br />I've only become less spazzy about the fuel gauge during the last five years. My car has a digital display that estimates how many more miles I can drive before running out of gas, which does a lot to make me feel better. Since the bulk of my driving takes place within a fifteen-mile radius with gas stations on almost every corner, I'm getting comfortable with taking it down to 10-15 mile range. My personal best is 3 miles, but that was really pushing it -- I got too nervous about whether the car's computer was wrong, and I was actually going to run out of gas in the next 100 yards. <br /><br />As for not having gas money ... I always have a few film canisters full of quarters in the glove box for just these kinds of emergencies. (OMG: Film containers! How old am I?! Do you even know what I'm talking about? I never buy 35mm film anymore, so I guess I should hoard the ones I have.) <br /><br />This habit is *also* courtesy of my dad and a family vacation, although this one happened before I was born. My parents took a trip to Maine, spent most of their money in Maine, and forgot about how many toll roads there are between Maine and Ohio. On the way back, they were really scrounging around for change at every tollbooth, so now he's a stickler for having toll money in the car at all times. So much so that for my birthday the other year he gave me a few new film containers full of quarters. <br /><br />(So, you know, if you weren't worried yet about the many ways in which you and/or Keith are warping Eleanor for life ... you're welcome!)<br /><br />As for margins ... If I have too many margins (aka "free time"), I procrastinate even more than I already do, which still leaves me running late and/or feeling guilty or anxious about not finishing what I thought I would. So ... I think that one's a wash. <br /><br />Speaking of procrastinating: I have two manuscripts to assess, some final changes to check, some marketing copy to proof, some SS lessons that need to be updated with recent statistics, and a partridge in a pear tree on my desk, so I guess I'd better suck it up and get started. Sigh.Amyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17315817930908086069noreply@blogger.com