My Lucky Flat Tire

Sometimes even bad luck has a cherry on top. This morning, as every morning, I was hauling my kids to their distant school on St. Paul's Eastside, then off to work. On 35E, I suddenly felt like I was on a ride at Nickelodeon Universe as my car started waving side to side. My dashboard showed a light I'd seen before when I'd needed some air in my tires. Yep, flat tire.

I was about to pull over to the side of the road when I realized where I was: about 50 feet from the exit to a big box retailer that also happens to have a good tire center. My husband had been happy with the service there before. I took a deep breath and told the kids "You'll be late for school" and gently drove up the ramp and into the service garage.

Instead of our school/work routine, my two kids and I spent the morning sharing a cherry Icee while waiting our turn and learning about tire rotations, alignments, and replacements through the picture window from the big store. I've had worse days.