1.02.2005

*Almost* Out of Gas

Whew! When I thought of the two events today that I could write about, I saw a distict theme. What does it mean in the greater scheme of things, I have no idea, but this blog entry will have a theme.
I noticed on my way to a friend's birthday party that my "low on gas" light was on. I thought about stopping for gas, but taking into account that a) I usually have a gallon left when that light comes on and b) I generally get 25 or mor miles per gallon, I decided I'd have plenty to get me back to my home area and a gas station I like that has a good price on gas. On my way back, buzzing along on I-25, my car gave a big lurch. Oops, I thought. So, I took the next exit off. Unfortunately, that wasn't an exit to a busy commercial area, but to the big football stadium parking lots. No gas. The car gave another lurch. I kept going through the spagetti of access roads, trying rights and lefts, almost at random, because I knew there must be a way to get to a busy street. Sure enough, after another turn, I suddenly recognized a bit of street and I quickly got myself to Federal, a main thoroughfare. I made it to a Citgo station with only a couple more lurches. Double Whew! The stated capacity of my tank - 11 gallons. The amount of fuel I put in - 10.993 gallons. Thank goodness my car doesn't just stop. Now I know how it behaves when running out of gas. Don't worry, I'm not trying that again, I'm just saying it's nice to know.
Then, today at soccer (after having a week off), we were short on players. In fact, our second girl showed up a few minutes late. We had one goalie, two girls, and three guys. That meant everyone who showed up had to play the entire game. I got complimented on my defense -- I'm definitely improving. And we won! Yup, 5-2. It was pretty awesome, but I felt like puking afterwards. The last 8 minutes of the game, I kept looking at the clock thinking "Ok, X minutes left. I think I can make it. Please, let me make it." Fortunately, I think my defense instincts are enough in charge during the game that I didn't let my tiredness stop me from running when I needed to run, or from chasing a person when I needed to. I was running on fumes by the end though. I'm still feeling a bit nauseous, but all for a good cause.
And what am I doing sitting at the computer instead of in bed sleeping? Well, I figured if I didn't write it down right away, I wouldn't get around to it.
That being said, I think it's time for bed.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am super-impressed by the soccer win. Great job. John tells me he HAS puked after track. The most interesting thing of the whole story is that in the cases you posted you thought you were running out but found reserves enough. The third example of this is that the blog commentary was duplicated online. Another example of having double the substance you THOUGHT you had.... :-)

Anne C. said...

Hee! Thanks for the heads up.
Yeah, we have been losing a lot since we moved up a division. It's amazing, but we always play better when we have fewer players. Some guys on the team call a surplus of substitutes "dilution of talent."
We have a playoff game next week, and if we beat them, we'll be 5th out of 6, and will be allowed to stay in the division. Cross your fingers, guys!

Anonymous said...

If you ever DO run out of gas, that will definitely get you subscribing to the aforementioned "never let your tank get below 1/4" theory. I've only run out once (well technically, because Mel was driving me in my truck to work so he could have the truck, but I was the one who let the tank get so low) but I NEVER want that to happen again.
Congrats on finding your reserves in both instances.
Karen