"Everyone here is so nice!" (Well, almost)

Well, it is Wednesday in the beginning of June in Alabama and it is HOT. Yesterday at lunch, my car read 97 degrees. Whew, it is going to be a hot summer!!

Anyway, that isn't really why I am writing, I just had to mention it. So, my mom and her best friend take a "girls trip" to Destin every year and stop through and spend one night with me on their way. Well, they will be here tonight, so last night I wanted to clean up a little bit (moms always seem to have on a white glove) not that my house was dirty or anything, after the deep cleaning I did a couple of weeks ago, but there was some laundry that needed to be put away and with a dog, I have to vacuum almost daily! I decided to run to the grocery to pick up a few things that I don't normally have but that they might like.

While I was there, I saw this older lady looking on the ground around and under her car. Now she wasn't old as in decrepit but she wasn't in her 20's either and probably shouldn't have been down on the oil stained concrete under her car. I noticed a few people passed and looked at her probably thinking "What is she doing?" So, when I got out of my car, I decided to ask. Don't forget I had been cleaning, so I looked a little crazy with yellow pj pants, an old t-shirt from college, my TOMS shoes (if you haven't heard of them, go there NOW), and a Coach purse. HAHA I looked all kinda crazy I am sure. Anyway, when I asked her if she needed help, she was hesitant to ask me for help, but proceeded to tell me that she had locked herself out of her car and was looking for the spare key that her husband had hidden under there. I said, well normally they are under the wheel well, she had no clue what I was talking about, so I showed her where I was talking about. We couldn't find it. She was from out of town (Virginia was where her tag was from). So, she said, do you happen to have a cell phone that I can call my husband and see exactly where he put it? I said sure and gladly handed over my Blackberry. She was very worried to use it because she was dirty from the ground, but mostly because it was long-distance! I said, ma'am, I have nationwide calling, nothing is long distance, it is really ok. So, finally, I convinced her to call him and went to get a flashlight out of my car (it was about 7 pm). While she was calling him I got under the car (mostly so she wouldn't do it again) and her husband walked her through the directions of where the spare key was hidden. We finally found it way under there. Anyway, we got her key and she got into her car and on her way. She was so thankful for my help, and another lady even stopped to help by giving the number of a locksmith. She wanted to pay me for my phone call, which of course didn't cost me anything. She said "Everyone here is so nice!" I assume she meant everyone in town, maybe she meant people in the South.

I couldn't help but think to myself what I had observed: There were at least 4 men who walked right passed us and looked but kept walking. WOW! Now, I must have been raised completely differently than these guys because any man I know would have NEVER walked passed two women dirty and on the ground under a car without offering to help! But, they did an I was shocked! Once she was gone, I went into the grocery store to pick up the things I came for, this time in the same outfit covered in black stuff from her car and the ground. A man that had passed us saw me and asked if everything was ok. I was a little irritated at his question, but said yes, just fine now, she had locked her keys in the car and I was helping her get her spare. He seemed shocked and almost appalled that I had helped . I said, someone had to help her, it sure wouldn't have been you. He looked a little stung, but I don't mind. So, it is a good lesson to learn I guess. You never know when you will need someone else's help. It is sad that of all of the store patrons and workers only 2 of us asked to help the lady (and we were both women). So I have to question: Are people here really all that nice?