Big old nail

2002-11-16 - 2:30 p.m.

I'm actually writing this on a piece of scratch paper in my car in the hospital parking lot. This is the third time since July that I've had to call my parents to come rescue me from car trouble. And the funny thing is that the first one was the first time this car had ever broken down. I just hit 70,000 miles yesterday. Well, in all honesty, it's not broken down this time. At least as far as I know--I haven't tried to turn it on yet. As I was walking out here I could see from a distance that the tire was flat. Not completely flat, but definitely too flat to drive on. I have no idea how to change a tire, although it seems simple enough, I'm not about to give it a go. I called home and my dad is en route. I keep wondering how I would handle a situation like this on my own. I'll have to get some insurance with roadside assistance or something when I move out. What I have now does towing, but I don't think they'd come change a tire. Do they offer basic auto shop classes for people like me? Maybe I should check out what the local JC is offering...in all my spare time, geez.

Today was the first foggy day of the year. Fog is one of Sacramento's trademarks. We are nestled in a nice little valley so the fog moves in from SF and stays for the winter. It was pretty foggy for a first foggy day, too. From the ground I couldn't see the top of my hospital. It just disappeared into nothingness. And it's not that tall. Only 14 stories. Well, 13, technically, since the 13th floor is missing.

I forgot to wear my ID badge today. And it's Saturday which means everything is locked down tighter. I didn't want to deal with security, but the security checkpoints are pretty easy to avoid if you know your way around the hospital. The problem is that there are some special doors in the hospital that can only be opened with an ID badge. And I happen to work in the two most secure areas of the hospital--pharmacy and pediatrics. I managed to get someone to let me into the pediatrics ward first thing this morning, but I didn't know if I'd be able to get back in, so I never left. Which means I didn't take a lunch break or a potty break. So I ended up getting done about an hour early. And then I spent that hour (and then some) waiting for someone to fix my tire.