At My Blondest

They recently revamped the gas bar at Mac's in Elmvale.  Now you can 'pay-at-the-pump' with their sophisticated new pumps.

Filling up the car is something I don't mind doing. I absolutely hate the price, but the task is something I actually enjoy.  I am one of those weirdos who likes the smell of gasoline, and I also love the feeling of getting back into the car and seeing the needle go all the way up to the Full line.  I find that very satisfying.

Even though I enjoy it and I do it frequently, it is by far the blondest thing I will do in a day. (Full disclosure: I am blonde).  Part of the problem is the size of gas bars; they are often small and awkward and have many cars vying for one of the few spots.  I also find that everything feels rushed, as more cars are lining up behind you and wanting you to go faster so they can move ahead.  The blonde in me doesn't like the mixture of "go faster" and "small, awkward space"; it can make me feel flustered.  (Aside: I feel the same way at the grocery store when I am hurriedly packing my groceries into bags and there is already another person's order flying down the conveyor belt and threatening to crash into mine).

So Mac's has new gas pumps and I had my first fill up with them recently.  I first added a bottle of gas line antifreeze into the tank, so my excuse for what happened next was that my mind was focused on doing that.  I grabbed the pump and tried to put it into the tank.  I say tried because the nozzle didn't fit.  My first thought was confused/angry: 'Wow, they got new gas pumps and now the nozzles don't fit?!?"  I looked over at the pump and a bright light was blinking under the word 'DIESEL'.  Damn.  Thank goodness they make the diesel nozzle incompatible with gas tanks or I would have had to explain why I put diesel in the car.  Fortunately I just get to tell a funny story about how I tried to put diesel into the car.