Hadnt heard this was a national thing. The car was low on gas today as I left so headed down to the locally owned station. Had trouble communicating with the clerk due to masks and low voice volume, but we exchanged thank yous and wishes for a good day.

While fueling a lady approached and extended a gift card for $30 to me explaining it's a Random Act of Kindbess gift for the small chain of stores I was at, given by a power generating company. Wow. Sweet.

Then I started reflecting on "why me?" She didn't hand one to anyone else. She was probably inside when I was paying. Had it been the thank you and well wish to the clerk, or just "random"? It still generated a desire to treat people with patience.

I try to do nice things for people as much as possible.....A) I am retired so I have time now and B) Maybe slightly trying to make up for being a complete idiot at times in my past.

I was up boat camping at Trinity lake back in 2003...the camp ground host had left and so had my Father. Heard a noise while reading and looked up to see a bear trying to get to my food box hanging in a tree....Shooed it away and then grabbed gear and drove the boat over to get the car/trailer ready to leave the next day.

Came back and the dang bear had ripped thru my net cabin and knocked over my Father's Cedar camping cabinet- I grabbed my (Small) hand axe and started chasing it while using every french word I knew (I made up a few also) He went up a tree and I was throwing rocks at him but realized that I had twisted my ankle.

Went back down to the camp and started packing...Suddenly I heard Marlon Perkins (Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom) Stating "Watch how the Lion THINS the herd by killing the wounded and sick antelope" My head snapped up.....I did NOT want to be "Thinned"! I had a lot of gear to disassemble and carry down to the boat but that ankle....

Saw a boat cruising by and went out to wave for help- But I had been knocking the tent stakes back and forth to loosen them- with that AXE...SO I limped out on the beach and waved at those people with the AXE....("Look Harry- I wonder what that AXE murderer wants?") I threw the axe back into the camp and waved some more.

They stopped and spent TWO HOURS helping me....When I tried to pay them they said "Just pass it on!"

I know this was along way round but I try to live this and try to be as nice as possible and help people ("Maybe if you just shut UP- THAT would help the most, Eric!") (Hey...)

My son (a fireman/para-medic) spent the last two days (his time off) using his 4 WD one ton Ram pulling stranded people's vehicles out of the snow around Memphis. Told me last night that he helped 38 different folks just yesterday, to include two LEOs. He was pretty frustrated though, the last one he pulled out of a drift as he unhooked the tow rope he used pulled away and smacked the left rear of his truck hard enough to do some damage. This driver didn't even slow down but continued on his way and left.

No good deed goes unpunished.

Rams

Keep on keepin on, doing good deeds

Few years back I took my wife, kid, and her friend to Avery Island. That's the Tabasco plant in Louisiana. The kids had never been. I wasn't thinking and before we did the drive through tour didn't buy fuel.

Catch a blowout leaving the gas station after we'd had our fill of the scenery. No tools. No Jack. No key to get my spare off.

I stop a coonass in another Super Duty. He takes me to the nearest dealership to buy a key. No luck. Roadside couldn't locate where we were. He ends up taking my tire if with me and I luckily find on that is usable. I had just bought these. All they had were 4 ply. I need 12. Fortunately I was only hauling our gear. I had limped it to an underpass. So they end up sitting in the running truck 2-3 hours while this guy helps me out. I had just made the 10-12 hour trip with only a few naps. Then the tour. The heat and humidity. He was a life saver. I was in bad condition by the end of it all. He wouldn't take money. Dinner. Not a thing.

Some folks do things because, it's the right thing to do. I rarely pass a vehicle on the side of the road that I don't consider to stop and see if they need assistance. There are situations where I won't stop and several when I do.

A few years ago, I was traveling in northern Colorado, saw a car up ahead with it's 4 way emergency flashers barely blinking. It was cold. I slowed to take a look, usually these vehicles are empty, this one wasn't. There was a young lady sitting behind the wheel. So, I pulled over and backed my rig up. Got out and asked if she needed help. Turns out, she was holding an infant inside her coat. She said they had been there all night. We're 80 or so miles from the next town, no cell towers close so, I loaded her and the baby up in my truck and hauled them to that town where her step dad met us at a gas station.

Transferred her, the child and her belongs to her step dad's vehicle, wished them luck and said good bye. I went inside the store and used the restroom, bought something to eat and headed home. Felt good to help her. But, as I said, no good deed goes unpunished. About 20 miles down the road, I got pulled over by the highway patrol. Someone had reported that I had pulled up to the gas pump, filled up and left without paying. The LEO was getting ready to cuff me and I asked again what I was being accused of. He said stealing gas. I then told him if he could find any gas on my diesel truck, I'd put the cuffs on myself. He made a call, turns out that station didn't even sell diesel and my truck was never near any of their pumps.

Just before letting me go, he told me that they got a lot of reports of thefts from that particular station. I asked if they had ever considered that the folks working there were filling up their vehicles and then calling the LEOs to cover up the theft by blaming other drivers?. He responded that they had thought of that.

I still follow the same guidelines, I've needed assistance in the past when no one would stop. That sucks.

Rams

[This message has been edited by blackrams (edited 02-21-2021).]

Reminds me of the joke about a kid sending Santa a letter and post office employees taking up an offering to delivery the kid.

An acquaintance claims he stopped to help a broken down female get her car started on a rural stretch and some dude jumped him from nowhere to rob him. We never really knew if that's what really happened.