Life’s Lessons Learned: Enjoy the Ride

Valerie J. Steimle

With all the craziness of an unexpected divorce, selling my house and moving across country from Alabama to Arizona, I have had some wacky experiences here lately.  From starting a temporary, part time job to moving furniture and cars around.  It’s been totally insane and I hadn’t had a lot of time to write about it. Here is a sampling of some of my “stranger than fiction” experiences.

You never know who your friends are: My new boss left me in charge of the ice cream shop where I just started working  to take a friend home and he let her drive around. I was told they would be back in ten minutes. An hour later, he didn’t show so I just sat outside in the dark watching the cars go by with a few customers stopping in every so often.  Well, the woman friend driving him back to work did not use her turn signal when turning. This attracted a local policeman watching and waiting, who stopped them to investigate. Low and behold this driver had no driver’s license and not only that, she had skipped her court date for her probation so she was arrested right there on the spot and thrown in jail. My boss was a little shaken up thinking he knew this woman pretty well. Whew. You never know.

Never walk to the edge: Husbands can be pretty silly sometimes but I know of one who had left his wife unexpectedly to move in with his mother. (ie. my former husband) He started working with his brother in remodeling and stucco.  Well, walking on a 12-foot high deck to measure for the job wasn’t enough he had to look over the edge. There had been rain and thinking he could just to see what was down there, he slipped on the water and fell off the deck falling 12 feet onto concrete. Smack. After being revived from death by his brother, he was taken to the emergency room with a concussion, broken bones around his left eye, broken left wrist, 8 cracked and broken ribs on left side, and punctured left lung. His recovery will be at least two months and a lot of pain. Don’t ever walk to the edge to look down.  It will get you every time.

Roller Coaster in Takabisha (Largest in the world) Google Images

Sometimes the wait is worth it: I had been listing some great tools, saws, 16 foot open trailer, old 1989 Ford truck along with other items on Craig’s list to sell before I move.  Two months of many calls and emails asking about the items and several “almost” sales was totally frustrating for me as I wanted to find people who could really use the equipment and make some money on the side. There were even some no shows after I spent my time waiting for them to come.  Until one day a young man of 19 called me to ask about the truck.  He really wanted it and said that he would be there to pick it up on Saturday. After my experience, I was leery and really wondered if he was going to actually make it. The awaited day came and he showed up with his whole family. Cousins, Uncles, Aunts and parents all were supporting him in his truck purchase. It was fantastic! It took an hour for them to pull the truck on the trailer (it needed engine work) but his step-dad was interested in what else I had for sale. So I showed him all those tools, saws and other items and he bought them all.  He was happy and I was happy. The trailer also went that day to a neighbor.  The wait is certainly worth the pay off. Now all I have to do is find a buyer for my house.

Life definitely takes you where no man has gone before and sometimes you find yourself in unexpected places. Just go with it and enjoy the ride.