I've been laughing about this since it happened. Ginger and I were at the Grand Canyon for our 18th anniversary and the night we arrived a snow storm came through dumping a thick white blanket on the town. Knowing I needed gas for the day, and being ready to go before Ginger truly got going, I decided to run out, fill up, and get back. I ran down stairs to the van and gawked at the mound of snow that sat in my parking space right where I had left the van. I found a baseball cap of Xander's in the back seat and used the brim to shovel snow off the van. By the time I finished that chore Ginger was probably ready to go, but rather than run back up the stairs to find out I headed out to the gas station. While I stood chattering in the wind fueling up I thought about how Ginger owns nothing that is designed to protect from the elements, and being the loving husband I am, I decided to go in search of a jacket and boots. While the first shop burst of "I hiked the canyon" and "Go ride a burro" T-shirts, there was nothing to appeal to the winter visitor so I headed up the road. I turned early for the next shop into what I assumed was a long parking lot joining two strip malls. As I tooled along merrily up the lot I saw the snow had not been plowed from between the two lots, but that it looked much like a "dusting" rather than the 8 inches I had shoveled off the van. I soon found myself stuck in what was definitely not a joining section of lot, but rather a dirt patch. I found that my tools in the back of the van were a pathetic collection of rather useless items. Xander's baseball cap probably topped my list of emergency preparedness. As I stood in the snow pondering a man came across the field eyeing me and then asked if I was stuck. I replied in the affirmative and then asked if he would drive while I pushed. He told me to hang on for a moment and he would grab some buddies. He went into the restaurant Ginger and I ate in the night before and came back with the kitchen help. I could hear in my head all the comments about the stupid vacationer who doesn't know how to drive, who is dumb enough to drive right into a big muddy lot because it is camouflaged with snow, etc... I've worked in a kitchen, I know how hard these guys work, and taking a break to help an idiot is not really appreciated. If I had been some hot woman with curves and lips, well sure; but no, I was me. I could hear it in my head. They pushed me out rather quickly and I thanked them most heartily and drove back to the hotel my mission all but forgotten and a failure.
Ginger and I took off for the rim and I stayed on the road, no attempt to cut through anything. We stopped at the other store for some snack items, and as we walked through Ginger asked me to hold her purse so she could take off her jacket. I stood in one of the aisles (Ginger was not right next to me, but a little away) I turned and there coming down the aisle was one of the men who had helped me. He nodded in recognition of me and seemed to zero in on the purse. I knew right then he was off to the restaurant to explain to all the others that it was now obvious why the situation had happened. Oh, the humiliation.
I didn't let it get me down; in fact, I laughed about it and still do. The Grand Canyon is beautiful in the winter with all the snow and lack of visitors. I highly recommend it, but stick to the roads
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