One Monday afternoon, Grumpy was not feeling well and I thought to take him for a consultation with his doctor to see if his discomfort could be diagnosed. After waiting for longer than the battery in my phone could last, Grumpy came into the waiting area with some papers in his hand. He was to go to the emergency room immediately or his heart could burst!
It was my first time driving his new truck – I was so excited; I forgot to really pay attention to his aches and pains. I was concerned, of course, as it sounded so ominous, and he was looking a little green in the face.
Oh, driving his new truck was a joy; everything is automatic, from push button starter to cruise control, to automatic braking to line changing alarms. Oh, boy, am I lucky to be given the responsibility of driving him to the emergency room.
As we neared the hospital entrance, I looked at the gas gauge and discovered it was almost to the empty red line. I said to Grumpy I would leave him at the entrance, go to the gas station to fill up the tank and come back and wait for him to be seen by the emergency room doctor.
As I left the hospital to drive over to the gas station, a warning light popped in the dashboard, but since I had no idea what any of the lights meant, I didn’t pay much attention to it at the time. Arrived at the station, turned off the engine, got out of the truck, operated the credit card slot at the pump, filled up the tank and got back in the truck.
Voila! The warning light come back, and the truck would not start! What? What did I do wrong? Is this a test? What’s going on!
The intelligent truck warned me to have the key ready or it wouldn’t start for me. This is a security device I knew nothing about. I don’t have a key. The key is in Grumpy’s pocket and he’s at the emergency room and I’m at the gas station!
OK, let’s figure this one out – after all I’m an intelligent person and not prone to panic. How can I solve this puzzle? First, let the gas station attendant know I need to leave the truck at the pump, take a walk over to the emergency room, pick up the key from Grumpy’s pocket, walk back to the gas station, start the truck and leave.
I walked back to the emergency room, asked the nurse to pick-pocket Grumpy’s pants, find the key and bring it back to the waiting room while I sit and rest for a bit before walking back to the gas station. After what seemed to be an hour of waiting, the nurse returned with the key, and I was on my way.
After waiting for what seemed all evening, Grumpy came out of the emergency area and said we need to get some Tylenol to take it 4 times/day and he should be fine.
So, what happened to the bursting heart? It wasn’t there. I think Grumpy was mis-diagnosed to begin with and now I wasted all evening running around. But at least I know he’s doing fine.
Grumpy would not let me drive him home.
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