I’m Getting Soft Y’all

In my old age I’m getting soft and used to my necessary comforts.

Take for instance this afternoon. After getting out of a meeting, I got in my car and turned the ignition. Nothing. Not a sound. I tried again. Again nothing. The third time did not prove to be the charm either.

So what did I do? I simply got out, whipped out my blackberry to call AAA, and headed for the air-conditioned comfort of the building. Before I was halfway there and as I was waiting for AAA to pick up (must have been a number of other lazy knuckleheads out there today), an image of my dad shaking his head and tsk-tsk-tsk-ing popped into my head. Negro, at least shake the battery cable. Do something before you give in the voice chided me.

So, back to my car I went. I popped the hood and guess what? A cable was loose. I’m puzzled as to how it got loose, but it was loose nonetheless. I got back in, turned the key, and the car started right up. My point?

Back in the day it would have not gone down like this. First of all, even if cell phones were available, I would not have been able to afford one. And I certainly would not have had AAA. Hell, I didn’t even have car insurance. I just drove around with my fingers crossed. So, I would have gotten out and done whatever it took to get my car started and get on down the road.

I don’t know. Maybe this is progress. Maybe I should be grateful that I’m blessed to have a back-up plan. Maybe I’m just too old to still be living by my wits as I was then. But still, I should have at least tried first. My dad would have. My uncles would have. And at one time, I would have.

I’m just glad my son was not there to witness my foolishness.