Flat Tire Fiasco or how not to change a flat tire.

I went in to work today only to go to a 7 oclock meeting.  My plan was then to make one stop and head home.  Lo and behold when I got back to my car it had a flat tire. 

Kind of deflated my mood a little, but no biggie I can change a flat. 

Step 1

Call my husband so I have moral support and trouble shooting help.  Put him on speaker phone.

Step2

Dig out the three huge garbage bags of clothes in the trunk that were supposed to have gone to the Rescue Mission months ago and put them in the back seat of the car so if anyone comes down to the parking garage I don't look like I am hauling around garbage.

Step3

Dig out the spare tire/donut and the tools and the little crappy car jack that comes with the car.

Step 4
Loosen the lugnuts.  Not as easy as it sounds. I don't have a tire iron just a bunch of great tools and so first I have to figure out what size of socket wrench I need. Start cussing.

Step 5
Jack up the car. Also not as easy as it sounds as it is a crappy little car jack and takes about 10 times more work than it should.  Cuss some more.  Finally get it to where I can take off the tire and the car jack folds in half.  Car is now back where it started and I have  no car jack.  Deep breath

Step 6
Go upstairs to the staff lounge praying all the while someone with a car jack is in there.  I am in luck.  One of the surgeons generously hands me his truck keys, tells me where to find it, says it is a crappy little car jack too, but if I want to wait for him to finish his case he will come help me.  Great, except he is in a longer case and I don't want to wait that long.

Step 7
Go find his truck and locate car jack.  I have some minor difficulties locating it and figuring out how to get to it, but do.  I can't get it out of the truck.  It appears to be bolted down.  Run back down to the parking garage and grab some sockets and a wrench I think will work.  Run back to the truck only to discover they are too small.  Run back to parking garage get some larger sizes, run back to truck, I now have the right size but the freaking socket is too short.  EFF!  Run back down to car, grab a ton of tools, go back to truck and finally get it unbolted from the floor of the pickup.  At this point I discovered I didn't need to unbolt it all I had to do was turn a little handle and it would have come free.  Start laughing, think about crying.

Step 8
I can't figure out the car jack. 

There are some extra parts I don't know if I need or not. Go back to nurses lounge and between three of us nurses we couldn't figure it out.  Call hospital security.  They offer to air up my tire.  I don't want it aired up I want my spare on.  They transfer me to maintenance.  The offer to air up my tire.  Finally they admit they have a car jack and tell me they will meet me at my car.

Step 9
Go back to my car, get car jack figured out and car halfway jacked up, when maintenance finally shows up with a real car jack.  Maintence man jacks up my car and looks impressed with all the tools I have and with the fact that I have the lugnuts loosened. I try to impress him some more by trying to take the lugnuts off and tighten them instead.  Ooops.  Damn socket wrench.   He helps get the tire changed and drives away.

Step 10
Get everything cleaned up turn around look at tire, it is nearly FLAT!  I mean it might as well be flat.  Shrug my shoulders and get in the car.

Step 11
Drive to Walmart so I can get it fixed and get my Christmas shopping finsihed. They tell me it will be 45 minutes to an hour.  PERFECT, things are looking up!  Go shopping, take my time, pay, go check on car.  Still not done.  Sit down, read some magazines.  It took 2.5 hours to fix a flat tire! 

By the time I left I was so frustrated.  I wish I would have brought my running shoes. I could have got a nice long run done, instead I don't get home until 1pm and the weather is no longer sunny and warm.  It is cold and windy. 
 

On the bright side I finished the kids Christmas shopping and came home to some great new socks to review and you will all have a chance to win a pair after I get them tried out!