Preview

Tire Blowout

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
512 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Tire Blowout
I was away working for a siding company in Connecticut in 1986 and had been away from my family for thirty one days. The work in my hometown was sparse as the mills had recently closed so I had made a phone call and on a prayer and a wing I left for my journey. I never knew what a revealing journey this was to be but it answers a question for me about driving through a blowout! I hadn't done siding but one time but needed a job to support my wife and two children so I learned the name of a few of the parts required to do siding to procure the job over 500 miles from my home. You may wonder what this has to do with a tire blow out so I'll get to the point very shortly.

We had worked the first nine days on a house in Blandford, Massachusetts where you had to drive up what the locals called the "devils staircase" to get to the home we were to cover with vinyl siding. It rained everyday and was cold so we were chilled to the bone. We wore garbage bags as raincoats and had to empty the water from our tools belts in was so damn wet. We had to sleep in a barn as we had no money for a hotel. The barn was warm as that was where he kept his exotic birds.

The last day the sun broke through the clouds and it was like a beacon of light that shone upon us as for the first time in days we were warm and dry. The next couple of weeks were like a picnic compared to our experience on the "devils staircase". We sided three more homes and were ready to go home.

Payday finally came where I had enough money to pay the hotel bill and have some left to pay the bills at home too. Getting ready for the journey consisted of getting some beer and whatever illicit drugs we could find for the ten hour drive home. Needless to say at that point in my life I was no saint. We packed the truck with the equipment and loaded our clothes and hit the road. We partied like the animals we were as the joy of going home compelled us to do so.

The ride was fairly uneventful until I decided at

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    It was a Wednesday morning that I'll never forget. I had woken up at 3 in the morning because I had to be at a park for a physical fitness test. The test was not until 6 but because I was taking the bus, I had to make sure I was out of bed and out of the house early in the morning. The first few minutes of my commute were peaceful; there was light rain, birds chirping, the insect's low buzzing in the distance. It was just a normal morning. After I had gotten on the 85 bus that goes down Central to Jefferson Park I was a little groggy so I rested up against the heating compartment. The little designated area where you push a button and the heat comes on during the winter months so that commuters are not stuck out in the cold for too…

    • 667 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    You could scarcely remember a time when you had felt so alone. 
Fallen, at the bottom of a pit on the side of Mount Ebott, with the cruel lure of sunlight bearing down on you, both awful and wonderful in what it promised and what it taunted you with.…

    • 254 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    When we reached the Blue Mountains, we were all faced with a big problem, the whole trail was covered in fallen trees and big bushes. And that wasn't the only problem, they were also pretty steep. For four days we spent cutting the bushes down, and moving all the fallen trees. On the fifth day we were finally able to travel up the hills, everyone made it up. The only thing that we had to watch was just to go slow and not to stop, and also to stay on the train because if you got off, you could fall down the wagon. We went one at a time and after a while everyone got up the steep hills. When we got to Whitman Mission, we felt pretty good, but really tired of traveling by wagon, and walking. We were looking forward to just getting to Oregon.…

    • 165 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Edward Smith's Monologue

    • 840 Words
    • 4 Pages

    It seemed like I was wandering into a different dimension. My senses were becoming acquainted to new feelings: guttural whispers, excruciating odour, ponderous glass-like air and the cemented, pungent, taste of death! As I opened the door candlelight rose to greet me but who lit them? I was informed that the secluded house I was purchasing has been unoccupied forever.…

    • 840 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Then, he saw a door marked with letters spelling “To Hell” across the camp. Peter quickly opened and slammed the steel door behind him. The ghostly voices outside stopped, but from the depths of the chamber, he could hear soft moans. Peter knew he couldn’t stop now. Slowly, step after step, still listening to the sounds of the moans, he made his way down the stairs.…

    • 440 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The dogs breath was hot, their faces were covered in blood and feathers as they waited for a drink of water, we picked up our dove and shells out of the powdery dirt field filled with sun flower seeds. With the west Texas sun pouring over our backs it felt like we would never even make it back to the cabin with out the smallest sip of water. We walked on the rocky dirt roads with totes full of birds dragging the butts of our guns as we could no longer hold them up, just waiting for the sounds of our parents vehicles to appear. Just at the time we thought we would have to end up walking miles back to the house the sounds of tires crunching rocks and air conditioner blasting made its way up over the hills. We immediately slumped over the nearest laid down log threw our gear down and watched our dogs crawl to the nearest shade tree, and we waited and waited and waited for the trucks to arrive, as we waited it felt like it took them a fortnight to reach us. As they got to us there was no other thoughts in any of our minds than to get a drink. It didn't matter to any of us what it was along as it was a cool liquid. Reaching into that cold cooler and feeling that freezing cold mist come off the ice hitting us in was the best feeling that we had felt so far that…

    • 1240 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A mere twenty minutes later, I was exhausted. The sun had burst through the clouds and was basking the mountainside in violent light. I was roasting in the safety of my outer shell. As my once confident steps became desperate shuffles, I began to understand that my end was near. But I had a goal to achieve, and so I fought to deny what I knew to be true. Soon, I fell back and separated from the group. It was then that the guide made his move. He swooped down on me, looked me in the eye, and told me it was…

    • 755 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    I just stepped off the school bus. The ground was muddy. The sky was gray. Rain was pouring down on my head like I was standing under a waterfall. I had only been at Algonquin Park for one minute and already, I missed home.…

    • 1546 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lake Tahoe had nearly about as many people as it could almost hold. It had so much people and boats were all over there in order to go fishing. We thought at first that the entire Lake Tahoe was just businesses, shops and stores. And , BOY we were wrong. On the east side of the lake. There were lodgings, restaurants, stores, and gas stations. Though on the west side of the lake , it was quiet and there were camping spots and very quiet with fireplaces burning all over the place. Then we weren't really that prepared for the camping. At first we thought that they weather would not be that cold and so then we decided to camp there because of the traffic. Then we couldn’t really eat anything and we were stuck and we had no sleeping bag and we had no lighter and just sat there at the camping site shivering in the cold. As we slept, I held my multi-use knife in my hand (cause you never know when you need it) with only a small towel to keep me…

    • 582 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Moving Day Research Paper

    • 631 Words
    • 3 Pages

    With my family in front, I stepped onto the tile entryway without taking off my shoes. My soles echoed subtly and strangely in the cavernous, open concept and my soul slowly deflated into the empty space. Sundry clutter was pushed into a corner, backed by boxes holding household items that I wouldn’t miss until they are at the back of the one-car garage and crying to be of assistance. Cautiously, I gave myself a brief tour of the place that I once was able to walk through with my eyes closed, albeit with a couple trips here and there. Though there wasn’t much to trip over there’s still a good deal to cleaned before we could officially call this our old place. I slide open my closet door to find not clothes, but bags and crates and more boxes. Defeated at the sight of so much to still pack, as well as tired, I retreated to where my bed once stood. I began to rebuild my personal space again, and soon I was leaning on my headboard with a warm comforter as a cushion, taking a glance out my window instead of taking a catnap on the cold hardwood floor. The sheer curtains rippled in the cool summer evening breeze, brushing against my skin like a kind ghost and I realized that the real ghost was me. The curtains still hung in the room as the last trace of my presence, but they did not move as I hoped. I had no time to spend in the past, and so I dolefully pull myself out from the spiritual afterlife. I begin to do my duties as to not drag out the…

    • 631 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    We reached the trench. I was a soldier fighting in the trenches of World War 1 in France. My squad and I hopped into the trench and muddy water splashed into our faces.…

    • 408 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As we were leaving I drank the last of who knows how many orange juices. Groom is about 45 miles from Amarillo and I had to pee the entire way home. I was near tears and by the time we pulled into the driveway I was already out of the JEEP, up the steps, in the house and to the bathroom. Oh what a relief it was!…

    • 404 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Moist Earth Narrative

    • 690 Words
    • 3 Pages

    It started as the first weekend of winter break. I was running as fast as my twelve year old legs could let me. My dad was parked outside the house with the truck loaded with camping supplies. I leaped into the truck and we were off. We were heading north to spend our weekend in Flagstaff, Arizona. We arrived to our destination around supper time. The evening trees had a small eerie glow to them. The only light that you could see was from our man made fire and…

    • 690 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    I looked down the hallway and around the corner I could see the blinding bright light of the day reflecting of the glass. I was jumpy, finally able to make it out! I closed my eyes, as we went through the glass double doors. A long time later, what seemed like forever we were finally home. Mom lifted the wheelchair out of the back and opened it up. "Alright, get on in,” she yelled from the driver's side.…

    • 1055 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Darkness so total, it felt oppressive, filled every corner of the room. A cool wind began to blow, causing the leaves to rustle and the curtains to flap madly. The howling of the wind began in earnest causing goose bumps to appear on my arms. went along the wall to reach the staircase. I hobbled quickly down the steps, eager to get to the kitchen where the candles and matches kept. The staircase creaked under my weight.…

    • 424 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics