Hardy Grass

Tonight was one that should go down in history.. and it would, had it never happened before. Unfortunately for my ego, it has, and thus it won't create for itself the monumental place that it should, but it's still worth documenting.

In the summer of 2001, I was living in Rochester with my ex-boyfriend. We were there because he had a summer internship at Mayo Clinic (computer department) and I followed him, as I was apt to do (and did, throughout our relationship). I had a job--eventually--with a party supply store, but had the weekend off. I had to make a trip to Minneapolis, which was an hour away.

I took the trip, and did whatever it was that was so important to me (at the time - but isn't it surprising the things that seem imperitive at the time, but end up being details forgotten for the better story?). I drove back to Rochester, stopping to fill Sam's car up about an hour away from our (quasi) home. As I stopped, and turned off the car, I remembered his paranoia about unlocked cars, and hit the auto-lock, and left the car. I had forgotten to turn off the car, however, and my own vast stupidity at locking the keys in the car nearly killed me. I had to go inside the station and admit to the attendant that I was the stupidest human being ever before they would suggest a solution.

Tonight, when the same situation presented itself, I asked Neighbor #1 to use his phone, called B, and made him come home. Then I talked to Friendly Downstairs Neighbor (#2) and he just happened to have a locksmithing kit in his truck. Unfortunately for us, by the time B arrived we had pretty much decided that he wasn't knowlegeable enough to get my freaking car open.

In 2001, I went to the shop next door, looked all cute, and the Crazy Merchant inside let me inside of Sam's car, and I drove away without paying a cent. In 2005, my Wonderful Fiance came home immediately to me, and called Pop-A-Lock; I was back in my car in a minimum of time in either case.

One thing I have to say is that this situation is much better than the one before it. Sure, with the 2001 incident I was able to take care of matters by myself, due only to my helpless/cuteness factor, but in this case, I didn't have to hide the whole situation from my lover. I have to say, this makes for a much more interesting story than the previous. The fact that I couldn't share and laugh about the first one might have a little to do with that.

I was outside tonight, looking around, and I realized something interesting. The trees here in Missouri shed their leaves, but the grass never dies. I'm used to a place where the whole world gets covered in frozen white for 6 months of the year, and in the last year I've gotten used to a state where the grass doesn't even Freaking Die in the winter. How crazy is that?

Do you think the two are related?