Just in Case

November 7, 2009 – Day 311

Whenever possible, Ken and I like to pay for what we buy and one of the things we’re saving for is a new(er) vehicle. We’re planning to buy one sometime next year but in the meantime, we drive “beaters”. I’m okay with that as long as they get us from point “A” to point “B” reliably, but Ken didn’t get to point “B” without some trouble with his truck yesterday. He was driving to work and his truck stalled at the lights of a busy intersection during morning rush-hour traffic. We don’t have cell phones (my nephew Shayne recently said “I can't believe I found the last couple on the planet that doesn't have cell phones. Do I win a prize or something?” :-) so Ken had to walk to find a phone. He wasn’t able to find a pay phone (I think they’re becoming extinct) but he kept walking until he came to a car wash that was opening and he was able to use their phone. He called home and asked me to call him a tow truck to give him a boost. If you need a tow truck in Edmonton, you call Cliff’s Towing right? That’s the only company I could thing of – it’s the company I see tow away illegally-parked vehicles downtown all the time, so I looked up the number and phoned them.

For $67, Ken got his boost but until we get that newer vehicle, Ken decided he doesn’t want to be in this same predicament again so he went to Canadian Tire today and bought a mobile booster pack. If he breaks down again and it’s a boost he needs to get going again, he will be able to boost his own battery with this power pack.