Wednesday, September 2, 2009

IN THE EVENT OF

As the bulk of my work day is made of traveling from one doctors’ office to another, I drive a company-provided, insured, and fueled vehicle. With the good folks I'm newly employed with, I’ve learned that texting or talking on my phone, even using hands-free, is stringently forbidden.

That being the case, rather than using my drive-time to catch up with remote family and friends as I once did, I alternatively listen to a bevy of books; and when I find myself in, say, Gardnerville, Nevada—an hour and a half from home—finishing up a listen, unprepared with a new book to engage, and only 200 tired songs on my iPod, I relish the amusing and sometimes productive opportunity to fall into my head.

I walk through the aisles of my mind considering everything from why people get tattoos, to letters of apology I should—but likely won’t—write, to what to post here tomorrow, to who I can get to teach my church lesson at the end of the month, to how I might find time for a Christmas vacation this year with The Husband’s work schedule, and if we’ll be able to head to the PeterHub for New Year’s.

I also mentally review my auto’s inventory, making sure I’ve got all my bases covered.

As I spend as much time in my car as doing anything else, I need the auto to be equipped for all things unforeseen. A packaged salad with no utensils? A drink spill? Bad breath? Unexpected arrival of That Time of The Month? Hem rip? Shaving cut not discovered until out of the house? Black pump’s toe scuffed? Broccoli bits from lunch lodged in teeth? Hunger pangs? No time to get home to change before yoga? Frizzy hair? Dead laptop?

Any of the above occurs: I don’t need to locate and utilize the nearest drug store; I’m driving it.

I haven’t been able to use my trunk for the last five years—it’s always been employed storing samples, anatomy models, patient education information, sales aids, and before they were no longer allowed, pens and notepads. Groceries get tossed in the back or passenger seat. That being the state of things, the little bits of necessity I keep in my car aren’t stored in the trunk but instead are hidden in seat pockets, dash compartments, arm rest cubbies, and under the chairs.

Though I pay some charming gentlemen to keep the seats, floors, windows, and exterior tidy, rummage around in my car and you’ll more than likely discover the following:
• Box of forks
• 2 packages of dinner napkins
• Single-serving packages of cashews
• Clif Bars
• Fruit leather
• Computer charging kit
• iPod/iPhone charger
• AC-adapted outlet for all other devices
• Change
• Eau de toilette
• Matching lotion
• Sunglasses
• First-aid kit (2 of them)
• Company-provided car emergency kit
• Bottled water
• Colgate Wisps
• Yoga mat
• Yoga clothes
• Flip flops
• Tampons
• Nair clippers
• Safety pins
• Fine-toothed comb
• Binder clips
• Lip balm
• Dose of antidepressant med
• Copy of our medical insurance cards and drivers’ licenses
• Fruity gum
• Minty gum
• Lip gloss
• Hair product
• Sharpies
• Fine-point gel pens
• Deodorant
• Extra name tags
• Nail clippers
• Double-sided tape
• Hollywood fashion tape
• Scissors
I have a counterpart that keeps running gear in his car so that he can go trail running in the event that he finds himself in the sticks without a lunch appointment. I’ve not inquired as to what he does with his sweaty self after the lunch run. Everyone deserves a bit of mystery and the rest of us deserve a bit of ignorance.

If I went digging through your ride would I discover anything interesting?

8 comments:

Celeste said...

i never go anywhere without my & my little girl's swimsuits.
also baby wipes. she's fully potty trained, but I think I'll still have them when she's 18.
floss; in my purse, in my glove box, in the center console.
sunglasses by the dozen, cheap ones.
spare flip flops.

rabidrunner said...

I have a yoga mat too! I especially like how flexibly flimsy it gets after baking in the sun. I have a citrus air freshener, a couple of hot wheels cars, jumper cables and two pints of oil. I also have at least 4 boxes worth of cracker crumbs jammed in the seems. Oh! And THE SPREADSHEET (the one lists people I know and their contact info - some like to call this an address book or address spreadsheet, but I like to call it THE SPREADSHEET.)

Jessica said...

i have doggy treats in my car. when i pick up the dog from her daycare trip i have to have a treat in hand so she doesn't attack me. she is so excited to see me and for some reason is surprised by my return, hence, the freak out. i also have a spectacular coconut-scented air freshener. i've used the same brand for years and i love it. my car smells like pina colada. other things: car registration, a doggy seatbelt (for above-mentioned dog), toilet paper (so the husband can check the oil and wipe off the dipstick), first aid kit, flashlight, umbrella. no garbage though. the husband hates garbage in the car.

whitneyingram said...

Two car seats
A stroller
2 soccer mom chairs
Tire pressure gauge
2 replacement headlights
1 replacement bright headlight
Insurance and overdue registration
Gum
Cute red gloves
Lotion
Toothpick floss thingies
Pencil
Pens
Hair things
Bobby pins
Handicap placard
2 small CD cases
And

MORE CRUMBS THAN ANY OTHER CAN IN THE WORLD.

whitneyingram said...

Damn it. I meant car in the world, not can. Or maybe can. My little red is a good car, but she is becoming a can.

Anonymous said...

yesterday I had to drive some students to a concert, and thus had to clean out my disgustingly messy car (the 2 front seats anyway). Let's be honest, my car is a total piece, so the dirtiness is only one of the problems (we shan't even discuss the fact that my glove compartment is kept together with duct tape, that often melts and falls open on unsuspecting passengers...I promise, a new car is in the works). Anyway, when I was cleaning out the car, beyond the standard candy wrappers (they're EVERYWHERE! I have a starburst problem), there was a box of Mike and Ike's that had spilled all over the back seat, so loose melty candy...and a potato. A raw potato. On the floor of my car.
I don't know why my car is so messy, I keep my house pretty damn clean, but my cars have always been a wreck. Probably because I've never driven a car that was made in the same decade we were in...

Walker said...

You would only find a few napkins, tissues and my key card for my work garage. Despite driving almost as much as you, I keep my car shockingly clean. It's only a year old and it's the first major purchase of my adult life, so I treat it like gold (since that's what we forked over for it). My purse, on the other hand, contains the contents of your car - minus the box of forks, plus a lent roller.

cat+tadd=sam said...

Receipts (mostly bank ones)
One CD case jammed so full of CD's that it won't close
Lots of gum
Tanning lotion (I hear leaving it in the heat breaks down the chemicals in it, so now it is basically lotion)
Books
An empty 32 oz. cup or two
Tampons
Napkins
Magazines
Salon tray (who knows why)
Tennis racket (again, who knows why)