Alternate title- Well, THAT was just special…
Sigh…
Pushed it a ‘bit’ late leaving the work site, so we decided to take the Expressway back up to where we were staying. Now the tropical storm eye wasn’t quite here, but the wind/rain was getting interesting…
For those who’ve been over here, you remember the Expressway is made with volcanic rock in place of ‘gravel’ seen in most roads in the USA. It sheds water really well, but it’s also SLICK when wet!
Anyhoo, we jump on the Expressway, and the “mid-sized” car (read tin can with roller skate wheels) is a bit of a handful. The guy riding with me is already nervous, since he’s in the left front seat with no steering wheel, no brakes, nothing…
It’s blowing 30ish knots, gusting 50ish knots, raining ‘medium’ (about what we’d call a frog strangler back home) and sideways. So visibility is not the best.
I’m more concerned about staying on the road than I am about speed, so I’m not really looking as I’m also trying to see the road and kinda crabbing into the wind. About that time we come out from behind one of the hills onto the first bridge going North…
Next thing I know, the other guy goes, “did you do that on purpose?”
What?
“Did you change lanes on purpose?”
I didn’t change lanes!
“Yes you did!”
Huh???
“I can see the guardrail now, before I couldn’t!”
Meh… So we get across the bridge, and there we go again…
See above… Same comments from him and from me. He has had all the fun he can stand, so he flops the seat back down and tells me- “Lemme know when we die!” and closes his eyes like he’s sleeping.
So I fight the car up the Expressway for 25 klicks, get off, and- The wind drops off, the rain stops and the sun comes out…
And he looks up and asks, “Did we die? Is THAT why the sun’s shining and there’s no wind?”
My timing sucks!!! And I’m STILL trying to get the seat cushion outta my ass…
It’s good you are in one piece.
Did you cross into the other lane?
Holyhell that made me laugh this morning – seat cushion in your ass! I’m awake now…
Best of wishes to you…
LOL!!! “Any landing you walk away from…”
And the fuzz those cushions leave behind drive me nuts.
YeOldFurt
“And he looks up and asks, ‘Did we die? Is THAT why the sun’s shining and there’s no wind?'”
Makes perfect sense to me. And now I need to go mop us some of this tea …
Andy- Probably 4 or 5 times on that drive… “I” didn’t change lanes, the car did…
North- Thanks
YOF- Yeah… sigh…
Nancy- no comment… 🙂
So which is worse, driving around Naples during rush hour or driving through a tropical storm?
The condition of the car seat seems to be the same afterwards.
Any landing you can walk away from is a good landing, good job!
Gerry
Do you get flight pay?
Great story! Made me laugh
Thanks
Reminds me of the first time we pulled into Bermuda. You could A ) walk, B) ride the bus, C ) take a cab, D) Rent a Bicycle, or E) Rent a Moped. We learned the hard way that A) the roads were made up with crushed Coral, and were Very Slippery when wet and Sharp all the time, B) the buses didn’t go anywhere we wanted to go, C) taxis were VERY,VERY EXPENSIVE, D) and everyone drove on the Wrong side of the road. Imagine a group of Sailors returning back to the Ship from a Night in Town, on Mopeds, driving on the Wrong Side of the Road, in the rain on Coral roads. Lucky we didn’t have to leave Port with half the crew stuck in the Hospital!
Thanks, NFO. That’s one of the reasons I come here tp read what you write.
I am sorry to hear about the seat.But I did get a much needed laugh.I am happy you survived the drive.
Last time I was in Japan I lost a side mirror to a big truck.
Left hand driving is an aquired skill.
DB- Naples, no question… They are just plain #&^& nuts ALL the time…
Gerry- Point! 🙂
WSF- Not any more dammit…
SS- You’re welcome
Bubblehead- Yeah, Bermuda IS it’s on little world… Now try carrying golf clubs on the moped after stopping at the Swizzle in… 🙂
Ed- You’re welcome!
Fuzzy- I’m just wondering how much they will charge me of 1/2 a seat…
Skip- That it is… sigh…