The Good and the Bad

by June T. Bassemir

 
My daughter came for a visit last week ahead of her Japanese husband’s flight by seven days.  That was good because it gave us a chance to meet and visit with my brother at Jones Beach which is about 60 miles to the West of Jamesport.  Brother Chet lives north of Jones Beach by about 20 miles.  It was our first 2013 warm spring day and we took our lunch.  Jones Beach has only one parking lot open due to extensive destruction from “Sandy” last year.

 With a full tank of gas the Honda was ready to travel on route #27 which is the secondary main road going from West to East ... or East to West.  It was decided to use that rather than the parallel Long Island Expressway, normally referred to as the LIE, “the world’s largest parking lot”.  As it turned out that was also good as exits are far apart.

All went well on Route 27 until we exited before our correct turn.  Instead of going south we were headed north and the map to show us the correct route to take, was out of reach in the back seat compartment.  That was bad but Diane found a good place to pull over and I got out of the passenger side to retrieve it.  A quick look at the car and I noticed the right rear tire was flat.  That was really bad.  Fortunately, a garage selling tires was within a mile and we limped to the place where two men sat waiting for customers.  That was good but their sign said “Used tires...Cash only”.  That was bad because my wallet had only two dollars and my daughter’s wallet was empty.  Searching everywhere for more money, as the man removed the old tire and prepared the newer one, I remembered stuffing some bills into the small compartment near the shift.  That was good because there was a twenty, two fives and a one.  That was bad because the cost of the tire was $35. plus tax but I found loose change to make up the difference in both door handles.  That was good.

We used the cell phone to call Chet to let him know what happened but that was bad because he is hard of hearing and couldn’t hear what I was shouting at the top of my lungs for the whole world to hear.  He blamed the cell phone for breaking up but eventually we were able to get out two words..."flat tire”.

That was good – at least he would know why we were going to be late.

The rest of the day was pleasant and our return trip back home was without incident.  However the very next morning the tire so recently purchased at the seedy garage was as flat as a pancake and you know that was bad!  Two new tires were purchased from an honest tire specialist nearby who suggested I go back and complain but there would be no compensation from the “Cash  only” place and I would be out both the time and gas to get there.  The bad tire waits at the curb for my next garbage collection day and that is good.  It was an expensive trip to Jones Beach on our first warm day - the last of April.

 June Tuthill Bassemir is the widowed mother of four and grandmother of 10.  An artist and writer, she  volunteers as a docent in a 1765 farm house.   June loves old cars and antiques, and has also enjoyed furniture stripping and rug hooking.  "I used to say I was a stripper and hooker.but with so many trips around the sun, no one raises an eyebrow anymore. They only laugh."  June has given up furniture stripping, but is still an avid rug hooker.