I’ll start with – Happy Birthday Mom! That
morning as I left my home, my travel began beautifully with an awesome sunrise over the
fields of Headland. Not much traffic on the road and some good music as I
cruised on down the road.
I really couldn't decide
if I wanted to travel toward Atlanta or Macon but as I entered Eufaula, I saw
one lane of traffic down the historic section and knew I would head toward
Macon. So with my travel direction planned, I settled down into my car seat for
what would be a 7 hour drive for the day.
I really enjoy this route
because of the small roads and the scenery. The stops along the way are the ones
I have selected over the years, and I feel very safe when I stop for a break,
food or gas. Some interesting sights that I continue to look for are the “men
who gather to talk on the steps on the long sidewalk extending from a house", “the artistic cutting of trees as topiaries by Pearl Fryer of Bishopville” and
the many country churches along the way.
So I’m traveling &
enjoying my ride and about to enter into “Interstate Territory” when I drive
over railroad tracks. Now I didn't think I was traveling too fast (speed limit
55 & I usually slow for tracks) but apparently I was for THESE tracks.
Glenn’s always telling me
that when you run over/hit something in the Mazda that the sound is kind of
exaggerated. I was shocked when I heard this loud sound. Checking the controls
& seeing nothing gave me a sigh of relief. However, it was a relief too quick to be!
Just as I was approaching
the turn off to Interstate 20 my car alerted me to “check my tire pressure”. I
turned onto the ramp & stopped to check the tires. Yep! My front right tire
was slowly going flat. Oh no!
After a phone call to
Glenn & AAA for some assistance, a kind gentleman stopped to help me. Mr.
Joe Collins, who lived on the road I just turned off of, was on his way to Thomson.
Mr. Joe changed my
tire & asked that I follow him into Thomson where he would help me with the purchase of a new tire.
We went to three tire
stores and none of them had the tire I needed…a 19”. I was even told that another
tire had a cut in it and some metal in the tire, and that I would need an additional tire. UGH!!! It just kept coming at me!!! The last store placed the "doughnut" at the rear of the car so I would be able to travel to Augusta safely for help & hopefully a new tire. Joe gave me his card & asked that I call him if I needed additional assistance as I traveled to Augusta.
Augusta seemed so far away as I drove way below the speed limit and actually thought I might get pulled
over for driving so slow. That’s a first for me! I’m approximately an hour and
a half behind schedule.
Glenn & I kept in
touch. He searched & found two stores on Washington Road. I missed seeing
the first one & ended up at the second one. Knowing what I was told at the
other stores, I asked the guy who was servicing my vehicle his opinion of the
tires. His opinion was that one of the tires was a
total loss but the other was still good with just a slight cut in it. The metal that was seen by the other guy was just something that got caught in the tread and pulled away easily. I just needed
one tire. Thank you Lord!
With a 45 minute wait as
they serviced my car, I reflected upon how blessed I was to have had Joe stop
& help me in my need. His kind guidance helped me to handle my situation in
a clear, unemotional way. I have a new friend…and his card if I ever need him
again.
I am on the road
again…YES!
