My dad had always taught me to be independent and learn how to do things for myself. He taught me all the basics of vehicle care and maintenance, tire pressure, changing a flat, oil changes, checking fluids, so on and so forth. He said, “Sometimes you might run in to trouble and there won’t be anyone around to help, so you need to know how to do it yourself.”

Well…one day, I was driving home from work as a school photographer. I would drive to various schools to do the photoshoots and this particular day it was a two hour drive from my house. It was far from home but the road was peaceful. There was next to no traffic on it. It was a scenic highway so no commercial vehicles allowed and there wasn’t even a shoulder where you could pull off to the side if need be. Just two lanes and trees all around.

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Of course, this is where I would get a flat tire. Like I stated, there was no shoulder, so I just had to stop in the middle of the lane and hope the road remained quiet until I could grumpily change my tire. It was quiet for a little while until a trooper pulled up behind me while I was loosening the lug nuts on the flat. He got out and walked over to me and asked if everything was alright. I told him I just had a flat and then nothing else was said between us. He just stood there and stared at me. It made me a little uncomfortable at first because I had no idea what he was thinking. I was thinking… you gonna offer to help or just stand there and stare? I didn’t know what was going on in his head. I just ignored him and continued with my business. I didn’t need his help anyways so whatever, weirdo.

I finished, stood up and started carrying the flat to the back of my vehicle. He walked with me and said he was really impressed. I said, “What do you mean?” He replies, “I’ve seen a lot of women on the side of the road with a flat tire but usually they are waiting for their husbands or triple A to come rescue them. You’re the first one I’ve seen that knew how to change a flat and didn’t need any help.”

After he told me this, I felt really good about myself. I was shocked to hear those kinds of statistics but I was happy that I didn’t come off as a damsel in distress. He asked me how I learned to change a tire and I proudly told him, “My dad taught me.” Thanks to my him, I could puff out my chest a little that day.

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed #9. I’ll be posting #10 and #11 soon so check back!

DIY, free spirits!