The next small truck stop I worked in was across the street
from the 1st one. It was now closed. It was at the 1st truck
stop that I met ER and his brudder. We all 3 would work for
these folks for the next few years off and on. Even though I
had been robbed at gun point, I did not have a healthy fear
of any thing or any one.
During my time at this place, I remember one night a local drug
thug had bought some beer. He wanted me to give him the ice.
I told him I could not do that. He tried for a while to get me
to, but finally gave up and went out side. As I watched him he
opened the ice box and got the ice any way. Well this really
made me mad..I picked up the loaded 38 that was under the counter
walked out the door. I will never forget the look on his face.
All I said was "put it back" he did!
I learned God has to have been looking out after me. I have
heard, God watches out for fools and drunks I was not drunk.
During the time I was working nights there I also worked for
my cousin. She and her husband ran a Bingo parlor. I worked in
the back room where all the pull tabs and blackjack table were.
This was lots of fun. But I watched people who did not have
the money, loose there rent and food money. I used to like
to play blackjack some. But I gave myself a limit and when it
was gone so was I..Another thing I learned was some people are
bad no matter how good you are to them. My cousin's son could
have had the world on a silver platter. But he choose to steal
from his parents, do drugs, and ended up in prison. He is now
very sorry for all the pain he has caused her and her family.
I left for a short time to work for a bakery. I worked in a
thrift store where you can buy day old bread and pastries.
This was a short job as the pay was not to great, but I could
have all I wanted to eat..I left there 10 lbs heavier..I had
to get out quick..But I do know now that there are great
bargains at the bread thrift store..
I went back to the truck stop. I worked there until I left for
California. But one more truck stop story. I can't understand why
a van load of men would try to scare a sweet young lady like me.
It was about 3:00am when they pulled up. It was a van with a small
uhaul behind it. The van had several guys with long hair and lots
of tattoos. After they came in I learned they were a band on the
way to LA. from New York. They chatted about stuff for a while
when one of them asked if I was scared working there at night?
I told him not usually. He was looking in a glass case with nick
nacks in it. It also had some of those butterfly knives. He smiled
real big and asked me what I would do if someone came after me
with one of them. This made me pretty mad but I held my temper.
I smiled at him, then explained that I would not do any thing
except pull the string. "What string" he asked. I said the one
attached to the sawed off shot gun mounted under the counter!
Now there really was not a sawed off shot gun under the counter.
There was a loaded 38 pistol. But it made me mad that he was
trying to scare me. You should have seen him trying to get out
of the store without going past the counter..They all left pretty
quick after that..I learned when in doubt bluff your butt off.
Next chapter I put every thing I owned in my car and moved to
California..
11 comments:
I think we're all lucky to have gotten out of there alive. I remember one time when I was workin' at the place across from where your car "disappeared" one night (hee hee), I started adding up all the people I knew or knew of who had met violent ends (some of 'em just out-and-out killed) and I stopped at 10. Dr. ER would say that was because I was runnin' with a rough crowd. But you and I know it was because that was a rough place -- and that was BEFORE meth made it even rougher!
I never heard the story about the string under the counter. I don't think I would have been quick enough to have thought of that.
ER, did you know the little truck stop is gone?
On one of my last ventures home I went that way
and it has been bulldozed down. It was a ruff
place at night that is for sure. I had just
yesterday thought about the car disappearing.
Boy did I have a potty mouth, when I was mad
(hung over and still half drunk)not a pretty
sight.
Crystal, I don't know how I came up with it.
The thing I can't remember was the name of
the band. our friend Frog was there for a
while but he had left when the string thing
happened. I bet he remembers there name.
My luck it is someone that is very famous
now..
Great stuff, who has the movie rights?
Too dang much around there is changing to suit me -- a sign, of course, that I'm gettin' old.
Has anyone heard from Frog lately?
The last time I saw Frog was at Mama ER's house the fall that I got married to Dr. ER, at a big ol' HONKIN' stump burnin' to beat 'em all. They say ol' ER got plumb tore down. They say he was sittin' on the tailgate of his truck, swiggin' drectly from a bottle of apricot brandy, talkin' in unknown tongues, havin' a grand ol' time, totally oblivious to the fact that the sounds comin' out of his mouth weren't words, not in English anyway. Dr. ER says she realized she had come to a crossroads with ER that night. She has low tolerance for stupid, sloppy or violent drunks -- and one of us was two out of three that night. Luckily, for me, she came on across the road. That was closin' in on six years ago. Other than sendin' Frog and Morgan a Christmas card a time or three since, I've neither seen nor heard hide nor hair of our friend, Frog.
I'm ready for you to take us to California and to tell us about your new job!! I hope it's great!
I've been sitting here for a month or more with my bags packed, all ready to go to California... PLEASE tell us the story! I hope you're doing well and just have been busy. I miss your stories!
Girl, where ARE you? It's March 4 now and I still want to go to California!
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