Adventures in driving

 This isn't me taking bits and pieces from a movie plot and making it my own.. Yesterday actually happened..  Fridays I wish were less work related, and more ... like a day fishing..  but yesterday was kinda rough..  I get up and get going, I figure take the day as it comes, don't force anything, knowing it was going to be a long one, technically speaking..  I would take the dialysis lady to North Platte, drop her off, go back to Ogalalla and pick up another rider and take her to Haxton Colorado. I was actually looking forward to that trip, mostly because I have never actually been to Haxton before, I've been out by there way back in another life doing ... something else (wink wink)..  but never in town, and after dropping off the rider I wanted to cruise the burg as the saying goes, take a look at the metro that is Haxton but because I was in a time crunch, that was out of the question, I had less than five minutes of down time, all of which was spent wizzing..  so..  I get back in the van, punch up the return trip and head back, I can drive a little faster and with less care with it just being me, so I go a little faster, not a lot just a little.. Get back to Sedgewick and think a short time about going on up to the home base of Chappell and getting gas there, for the reason to come, I also thought it would be easier..  BOY WAS I RIGHT..  But I continue on the trip as puched up on the navigation program..  Two construction zones later I'm getting back to NP.. Gas gauge under eighth of a tank, it's not time to dilly dally, I needs gas.. so what do I do?? that's right, priorities are, get the van washed, it's what is next do be done so.. was the van at the auto wash, vacuumm it as well and then head for walmart.. as I walk towards the front door I'm thinking, was there something else I needed to do?? oh yes, GAS.. well I needed to look for something else and here is the kicker at walmart, the shelves are looking bleak in North Platte, very empty in certain parts.. but .. here is where it gets interesting, remember the car wash part of the game earlier?? It uses a card to get things going.. I get the card handed back, wrapped in the receipt and instead of putting it back in the key holder I leave it in the seat, to be put back in while in the car wash.. but I didn't do that, instead I watched the car wash mechanism work, and it worked flawlessly, mesmerized to the point of hypnotized .. sort of.. anyway as I left there after cleaning it out, I go to walmart, grab a couple things, neither were important, not enough for what was about to happen..  remember me not putting the wash card in the card holder?? well that made the gas card be extremely loose, and we had wind yesterday, lots of wind..  And I was tired and not paying attention.. I get beack in the van, and go in search of a gas station, where to first?? well lets go to the kwik stop up by.. wait a minute.. why is the card holder empty??  I pull over at the little park where I like to hang out, and look at the card holder. why is it empty??  I look on the floor, no card.. I search all over in the van, NO CARD.. NO GAS CARD.. the car wash card would be bad enough, but the gas card.. that could be life ending or.. more to the point, reason to be terminated from my job??  possibly, I didn't want to find out.. retrace your steps..  The first place to check was the last place I was at, walmart.. How did I know not to go to the car wash?? I didn't, I just remember not freaking out that the card was missing at walmart, life was good twenty minutes ago.. so I go back, look next to where I was parked, looked right there and a few feet away, knowing how hard the wind was blowing, who knows where the card might have ended up.. I make my way to the store, and look as I go, no card.. actually I wasn't looking for the card, I had this feeling someone might have picked it up and taken it in to lost and found.. I personally have taken several cards and a pocket book back to lost and found.. Hope whoever lost them found them without reporting them missing first..  I just hope there are other people like me who are a little honest.. Just a little honest.. please be there.. I ask them at the service counter, was a credit card returned recently, like in the past half an hour.. there was but not this one that I lost..  So I am starting to walk out of the store, I dial the security code to unlock my phone.. the call I dreaded making was about to be dialed, I was about to call my boss and tell her the bad news.. and I stopped and went out in search of that card.. where could it be?? I went down the lane where the cars are parked where  I thought this could be, and sure enough.. karma must have been smiling on me.. I found the card.. there it was.. wit h the KCTS in the lower left and FLEET and... breathe again.. I can breathe again..  I get in the van, the day isn't over yet, I still needed gas OR ELSE..  I went in search of a gas station that would take this card, worthless as it might be at most gas stations in town, I'm now guessng that there is a reason for making ths card worthless except two chains, and those shall remain a secret for this entry.. unless I let it slip.. It takes a certain procedure to get the cards to work and if you don't know it, then the card is worthless.. It's an ice scrapper then..  I try three gas stations, all three show no go.. I call dispatch and ask, where does this card work for getting gas at.. they tell me, and so now, I have to go look for a gas station to make this work.. I get to the first one and it looks like woodstock is going on somewhere nearby, there is a line four cars deep at ALL of the pumps.. I don't have time for this shit, Sharon might be waiting for me to pick her up.. I find an open pump, oddly enough.. put the card in.. rejected.. try again..rejected again.. go see the clerk.. I go see the clerk with card in hand, but first I write down the pertinent information to activate the pump.. I hand the card to the guy and he says he will activate the pump.. Ok. I get enough gas to get home, and really no more.. and go back to the clerk. this is when things get ... weird..  OK.. I can't remember all the events of this conversation but it went something like this.. ah.. you think the wind is going to get with it and blow anytime soon?? me knowing its a smartass question. it was already blowing category one hurricane strength..  He asks who the card belongs to, I say KCTS.. he asks me to spell it out so I again spell it out, KCTS.. only this time I spell it out as Kimball, County, Transit, System.. not service, system..  and he looks like I just slapped him.. what did he want me to spell out?? so he finally  activates to key theing there, like they have..  I put in the information to get this done, and he seems more than a little disapointed in something.. Not sure what.. as I leave I get out of there not quickly, but with some haste, I am after all likely running late to pick up Sharon..  I get to the dialysis center and pul in, take a breather.. and the phone rings..Sharon is ready.. good enough.. what I think about now about the clerk at the station I was at is.. he might have called the police to come check out the van, thinking I might have stolen it.. I don't fault the guy in one bit at all, in this day in age.. I mean it could have happened..    And I say that because of what wil happen later in this saga.. I get Sharon home, drop her off, get the van home, get it cleaned and everything.. get out of the senior center and drive down the street to the highway and as I do the county mounty comes up the street and I don't think anything of it, I turn to go to the gas station for me to get gas in my car.. Upon returning down the street highway to leave town I look over at the center and think just how weird the day was.. and as I get to the west end of the ally (looking) I see the sheriff exiting the ally and I am thinking what do you bet the guy at the station did in fact call the van in as suspicious situation..  or possibly being stolen..  And the local PD was just checking it out, making sure it was there..  I couldn't think of anything else all night..  was this something?? who knows...