It was a warm sunny day with blue skies, so how could it be anything but a relaxing trip as we rolled down I-64 with the windows down and country music up? Then we hung out in the section of Lowe's where the smells make me think of home and of my dad. We picked out seeds for plants, gloves for hands, chicken wire for compost (so much joy!), and lumber for garden beds.
I've spent enough time in gardens to feel the competence of familiarity in the lawn and garden section; yet, in the company of a "master gardener" (I have no idea what that means), I knew enough to know my ignorance. So I had the fun combination of learning about something I already love.
In addition to all the things we bought right then and there, we also ordered a huge amount of dirt -- several different kinds. I learned that when you buy more dirt than will fit in the bed of a pick-up truck, let alone a two door sedan, you can have Lowe's deliver it.
After a long time at customer service to arrange tax-exempt information and delivery details, we loaded up Ana's car. We hopped in -- she turned the key -- and the engine fluttered like a large insect trying to take off in flight. Ana tried again and got the same reaction from her engine.
After a phone call to her father, which made us worry that it wasn't the battery, we described the problem to a passing stranger, who listened and said it sounded like the battery. Turns out, Lowe's is a decent place to break down, because they let Ana borrow jumper cables. An older man in a pick-up truck jumped us.
The battery hadn't just run down; it was dead, and we had to get a jump to leave school that day too. By the time we'd watched it twice, I think Ana and I both pretty much learned how to jump-start a car. In fact, we probably could have managed it the second time on our own, but once again, a man in a pick-up truck helped the damsels in distress, and how could we take that away?
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