Gingerly Lizzy


We learn by trial and error
2001-11-01 - 10:44 a.m.

Today I have committed to catching up on the times with my REAL journal. In it goes the day to day happenings, my feelings and all the personal stuff that I would never drag out into the public eye. I am just not that type of person.

This is my fun journal. The journal where I can spout random thoughts and meaningless dissertations. Only every once and a while do I grace its "pages" with some valid material.

I have soooo much catching up to do, like almost 5 months of catching up in the most life changing five months of my life... ouch.

But today I want to dig something up that is REAL.

A tribute to People from Nebraska and the Jiffy Lube in Evanston Wyoming.

Picture this, little old me, just got my wisdom teeth out a week ago, left my precious "kids" in New Canaan, CT and was about to once again leave my family and embark on a journey back to Utah -- although this time all by my lonesome. I was in a hurry to get back to Dave, to have my own apartment again, to be responsible for me and only me. But was it ever hard to say goodbye.

Part of me must have sensed that this would be the last time I would have the option of living at home with my parents. Another part of me was terrified to make this 36 hour drive all by myself. I was now starting to realize that I had been wayyyy overly gutsy in being so adament about doing it alone.

My mother must have been equally worried and also felt as if she was losing her little girl kind of for good, because she wouldn't let go of me and the tears came freely.

As I drove away from the little house, I felt as if it was the last time I would be there. I was so scared and each minute that passed I wanted to turn around and finally I did. What was I doing? This was insane! I couldn't do it... but when I was about 1 minute away from my house, a song came on the radio about fear, and how it is what stops you from doing so many wonderful things in your life...

Wow did I just get hit over the head by someone.

I turned back around and headed for the bridge that would take me into the US. I knew if I could just get on that bridge I would be less likely to turn around again, especially if you were waiting for two hours to make a cross that usually took 5 minutes...

I started out. The music blaring so that I wouldn't drive myself crazy with all my thoughts... I set out on 80 and just drove, and drove. It was pretty late when I hit Chicago but I was on a mission so I made it to the beginning of Iowa before I decided it was time to stop and sleep.

When I called my house, my mother was sooo estatic that I wasn't dead on the side of the road.

I slept like a baby and it the early hours of the morning, I started off again...

This time I made it all the way to North Platte Nebraska (with a few fuel and pitt stops along the way). I pulled into a McDonalds restaurant to get a bite for lunch and that is when it happened. I went to reach for my wallet and it wasn't there...

A sinking feeling hit the pit of my stomach as I searched around the car... I started to hyper ventilate and cry at the same time... as I realized that I think I had left my wallet on the roof of my car when I was checking the coolant...

about 4 hrs back.

No money, No credit cards, banks cards, divers liscense, s.s.

I didn't even have my birth certificate, or duel citizenship certificate... I had EVERYTHING in that wallet. And I was one of the dumb people who used their birthdate as their check card code. DUMB, DUMB, DUMB.

I was stranded. Out of gas.

I was seriously hysterical. More scared than I have ever been in my WHOLE life.

I then remembered I had $20 in a birthday card in the back of my car. I still couldn't head back though because for one thing, I wasn't positive that I had lost my wallet in that manner. I also wasn't sure what was the last town, or the name of the gas station that I had stopped at. I wasn't even sure how long I had been driving.

I drove down the road, looking for a pay phone, barely able to see out of my eyes because the tears were coming so furiously.

I pulled up to a payphone. It was broken.

I saw a mall nearby and pulled in. Thank goodness for that.

As I made the desperate collect call to my mother, who was freaking out just as much as I was, a few corporate looking people passed me and I merrited quite a few curious glances.

When I got off the phone, after instructing my mom to cancel all my bank and credit cards, one of the women came up to me and asked if I needed help.

Soon I was whisked away into the mall office. It turns out that those distinguished looking people who passed me were the mall owner, the chain owner from NY, the Mall manager and her assistant.

The mall manager just HAPPENED to be of the same religion I am, when you are LDS that is few and far between, unless you are in Utah or Idaho of course.

They spent an hour making various calls to different gas stations along 80, called the Highway Patrol and the State Troopers, offered me a hotel room, dinner (which I accepted) money and the free use of a phone...

One of the ladies who was originally from Alabama, told me that I was going to come home with her and stay at her house for the night. She called her kids and it was all settled. I wouldn't be able to pick up the money my mother was wiring until the next day.

I spent the night at a strangers house, wayyy out in the middle of nowhere, with hardly a penny to my name...

God Bless those kind, generous people in Nebraksa. They saved me.

When my car broke down in Wyoming, an hour away from S.L.C., the wonderful guys in the Evanston Jiffy Lube stayed late to help me fix my car... and didn't even charge me.

When I finally touched down after 3 days of despair, I was so grateful to see the familiar sights of the wasatch front I could have got down on my hands and knees and kissed the dirt.

And it was all worth it... Cause that night, I got to see Dave and give him a biggggg smooch...

HE is the reason I went through all of that anyway...

but I learned a lot about myself along the way. And also that despite the world and all its problems, there are still so many good and caring people out there.

God Bless America! (Canada included)

Not so Dizzy, Lizzy

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