Subject To Change

Subject To Change

Saturday, October 26, 2013

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

Have you ever stopped to help someone change a tire on the side of the road?

I did it the other morning.

In my small town and almost to the highway, I saw 2 black women with a flat and it was pretty obvious that they didn't know what they where doing. So I stopped. "Do ya'll need any help?" They said "Oh yes, please, please!"

As I am working on installing the spare I hear a guy scream "Get your hands up!" I turn to look and it's a cop with his gun pointed at me. There is another one doing the same thing with the women there. I do what he tells me and  move to my truck and put my hands on it so he can cuff me. It turns out that these lovely ladies had just carjacked somebody for this car. As I am sitting on the guardrail cuffed with my fuckin' neighbors driving by I confess my innocence to him.  He seemed to believe me but we had to wait for a detective to show up so I could be 'cleared'. I finally was cleared and got the hell out of there.

I realized later some of the things I did wrong, some of them really wrong. It's not that I stopped to help them, sometimes people need help. The problem was that I was in condition white, I was too trusting (Wirecutter had a post about it).

I noticed that the tire was shredded, not just flat. They must have driven on it for a while, that should have been a clue. I still went to work on it without keeping an eye on them. They may have wanted to jack me. My truck was there, running. If that's the case, the police saved me.

I also didn't notice when 2 guys came up on us and had me in their sights. They yelled at me before I saw them. I felt like a sheep.

I still feel like an idiot and lucky to not have a knot in the back of my head and a stolen truck or worse.

Go ahead and leave comments about how else I screwed up. If it helps me or anyone else it'll be worth it.

22 comments:

  1. When I was younger I might have stopped, but that was a different era, no way I'd stop now. I've been broke down many times in my hot rods over the years, no one ever stops, so the hell with them. Your damn lucky....... ;-)

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    Replies
    1. I'd stop for you bro.

      I don't know what I feel more, lucky or stupid.

      Delete
  2. During College friend of mine stopped to help. It was a setup. They hit him in the head with tire iron stole his wallet and his car. He died from head injury laying on the side of the road..
    If I pull over to help someone, I keep my hand on my concealed carry.

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  3. I did stop a couple months ago... but the stranded travelers were in their 80's and my vehicle was a running ambulance with a partner - and a radio inside.

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    Replies
    1. Probably safer. Where the hell have you been?

      Delete
  4. Orbit, next time you decide to be helpful give me a call, I'll stand overwatch...

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    Replies
    1. Sure thing, how long will it take you to get south of Dallas?

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    2. About eighteen hours, so you got to give me a little heads up...

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    3. Hmmm - how far 'south' of Big D - I can get there in a LOT less than 18 hours ;-)
      Seriously, while you did make some tactical errors, you DID do the human thing by stopping to render assistance. Well, that used to be what civilized folks did, in this case you ended up being fortunate in how it turned out. Biggest takeaway, ya learned some valuable lessons relatively cheaply.

      GomeznSA

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    4. I'm in Ellis county.

      And I agree with your conclusion.

      Delete
  5. At least they were car jackers and not car bombers...

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  6. I always look at my phone to see if I have service if I do and it not freezing or boiling hot I just drive on by...Everyone has a cell phone these days and you can't watch everyone trying to do a task.

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  7. Orbitup,

    I was wondering if on reflection there were anythings that stood out, any clues you saw then but didn't realize besides the shredded tired?

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    Replies
    1. Yeah, it seemed like they might have been high on something. I guess I was already committed by the time I noticed.

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  8. I've been on both sides. 8 monts pregnant and trying to change a flat on I-40 in July. And I helped two very lovely gay dudes with immaculate manicures change a flat.
    Thank God you're okay.

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    Replies
    1. Were those 2 gay dudes just passing through?

      Not a lot of that up your way.

      Delete
    2. Darlin', we have the Amarillo Little Theatre, the Lone Star Ballet, and a Fine Arts College at WT. We have almost as many gay dudes as California.

      Delete
  9. The wife and I pulled over once on southbound I95 (much, much younger at the time). A fellow was on the side of the road, hood up, flashers flashing. I got out, walked up to the car, and asked if he needed assistance (no cell phones in those days). He told me to go the [fark] away - has was a radar trap...

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