Waiting

Another 5000 miles. Another oil change. Tires need rotating. The air conditioner's been acting weird, as in blowing hot air at inopportune times, or not blowing at all. You all replaced it in June, remember?

The appointment for the car was at 7:30 this morning, half an hour before the service department here at Yonce Ford actually opens. I was almost giddy at the thought of getting in first, ready for a quick in and out.

When I arrived at 7:20, I was surprised -- and immediately disheartened -- to see all the bays full. A boxy vehicle from the Meriwether Fire Department, several pickup trucks, an Edgefield County ambulance, a County Sheriff cruiser. My heart sank. "I have things to do," I whined inwardly. "Why am I the one who has to bring the car in for service?" I grumbled. And, I accuse Tal of not waiting well ...

I started writing this post while I sat in the waiting room, trying to grapple with my snarly mood. Several sentences in I was stuck and began looking around. No car in the show room. No lights on in the show room or any of the offices. Good magazines though. Current. No 2011 brochures. Bet they're expensive and are parceled out carefully. Blessedly, the television was dark and silent.

An employee ambled through, emptying trash baskets, his greeting cheerful -- as was mine. I only had to force it a little bit. The sounds of coffee being made soon came from the direction in which he had gone, and then came that singular and enticing aroma. He didn't offer me any, though.

Over the course of 30 minutes or so four codgers arrived one-by-one. Their conversation -- all about their impending drive, alas in the Focus parked out front, to Altanta to ferry three new vehicles back to Edgefield -- was enough to bring a chuckle to the back of my throat and a smile to my face a couple of times. (I was SO glad not to be making that trip!)

I saw our car emerge from the service department and head in the direction of town. I made a list of things I needed from the CVS, drafted a thank you note I'd recopy once I got home, read an article on an artist in Aiken. The car reappeared from the opposite direction in which I had seen it go and then disappeared back into the service area.

In the end I partook of Yonce's hospitality for about an hour and a half. By the time the service manager came to get me I was almost a new person, a new person who was very happy to hear that the air conditioner was going to make it another 5000 miles, not to mention the whole car.

There's nothing like unanticipated hang time, I suppose. The imposed wait seems to be just what I needed today. I've sort of been put in my place and I'm better for it.