Lessons

Gen III; Lesson 4: Emphasis

Ok, I'll admit it, sometimes I do silly things. Here's the one for today. I finished my mail route and got back into town. When I turned next to the firehouse I saw a firefighter get out of his truck and run for the station. It looked like he had left his truck running or at least left the keys in and left it parked on the wrong side of the street facing traffic. Being a good and honest citizen, I tell myself I'll go back and check it when I get my mail done, since the post office is about three blocks from the firehouse and on my way home. I did so, and it was locked and secure, and I felt silly. 1

So I walk back across the street where I had left my car to check the fireman's truck. I had parked in a yellow zone, too. I got in and started it, and as I was putting my car in gear, a town cop came up right behind me. He had moved over to the side of the street and slowed down, so I just went on my way. No, lights were turned on, so I think, Nothing to do with me.2


I go to the end of the street, turn left, so does the cop. I follow the back street on down to the end and turn right, so does the cop. I go on down the road , turn left toward the unincorporated part of town, so does the cop.3

Now I think, Crap! He saw me by the truck and wants to know what I was doing, I know he does. Darn. I am such an idiot! 4But wait, another car turns ahead of him and he follows it along, so maybe he's just going this way. Nope, about a mile down the road, the lights come on, red, blue and white strobes, he passes the car in front of him and I pull over still hoping he wasn't really 5following me, but he was.

He pulls behind me and walks up to the car. He's not wearing his hat. Is that a good sign, or does he just not want to get it wet? It's raining now, too.

"Hi," I say, and smile sheepishly in a way I hope isn't going to make him suspicious.

"Good afternoon, Ma'am. I'm Corporal Cannot Remember His Name, I stopped you because I saw you back on the street by the firehouse and I was wondering what you were doing." he says, looking a bit like he thinks I'm an alien, but not the kind from another country.

"I just wanted to check to make sure it wasn't still running."

"You wanted to make sure it wasn't runnig? Why?" he asked, looking a bit befuddled.

"Well, I was just going to drop off my mail at the post office when I saw the fireman run into the firehouse. I was just checking to make sure he hadn't left it running, cause it was still there when I got done."

"Oh, did you know him?"

"No, I was just making sure the truck wasn't running because he left it in such a hurry. I figured since he was running to the firehouse, he may have left it running." I shrugged to indicate it wasn't a big deal, nor that I was overly concerned about it any more.

"Okay, I just wanted to ask. Have a nice day." He said, but I didn't think he sounded completely convinced.

I imagine at this point he's rolling his eyes as he walks away thinking, "Dumb woman." He is shaking his head, I think, but I did have good intentions, although it may have looked like I intended to commit 'grand theft auto', or something. I chide myself, thinking I really wasn't doing anything wrong, officer, you just happened to see me doing something weird.6

So, yes, I do silly things, but I often do them for the good of my fellow man. Of course if he'd parked his truck out in back of the firehouse where it belonged he would have saved me some embarrassment. But then, that thirty seconds may have just saved someone's life, so what's a little embarrassment after all.7


IdaLin
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Footnotes
1  positional
2  positional, italics
3  positional, italics
4  positional, italics, bolding
5  bolding
6  positional, italics
7  positional