The thaw started yesterday, while the rain started last night. By this morning, the yard, fields and barn area are turning into a muddy mess. The delivery driver thinking our driveway was an address on Swains road made an honest mistake. Her decision to turn the truck and goose neck trailer around in our back yard was not. The driver buried the back tires pretty quickly and just after that is when I got the call from Cathy.

My neighbor Mike called earlier that morning to ask a favor. A tractor was being delivered to his house, and due to the weather, was delayed. Would I mind meeting the driver at his house and backing the tractor off the trailer? No problem. It’s raining a bit, but what are neighbors for?

The driver calls me mid-morning to say she will be here shortly, and I say great, I’ll meet you at Mike’s house. I drive over there and wait. And Wait. Then, I get a call from Cathy – “There’s @#@%&@ truck and trailer stuck in our @$^*&&@ back yard!”

I drive home, and sure enough, there’s the truck, trailer, and Mike’s tractor all sitting in the back yard. The yard is torn up and the truck rear tires are about 8 inches deep in mud. Cathy is visibly pissed (Note to self: check later on why Cathy is barefoot, and carrying her winter boots in her hands.), and the driver, Barb as it turns out, is saying she will pay for any and all damages. For some reason, she thought our house was my neighbor’s, even though we have different house numbers, and live on different streets.

Cath goes inside, and Barb and I proceed to get better acquainted. Her F250 has 4 wheel drive, but can’t seem to get moving. We decide to offload the tractor, and maybe with the lesser weight, the truck can get unstuck. The rain is coming down heavier now. She puts the back ramp of the trailer down, and I back the tractor off and park it. We try and move the truck and still no good. We unhook the trailer, and still no good. The 4 wheel drive doesn’t appear to be engaging. I come back to Barb’s truck to talk with her, and she’s crying in the cab. I say “hey, don’t worry, this’ll work out”. She answers back that she’s had some bad times lately. She buried her 85 year old father last week in Georgia. My brain flashes to my folks, Cathy’s mom, and you know, when it gets down to it, we are all just people. I tell her I’m sorry, and “it’ll be OK, we’ll figure this out.”

I look at her 4 wheel drive switch and something doesn’t look right. I call my local truck guy and we discuss. Finally, I send him a photo. Sorry, it’s not 4 wheel, it’s 2 wheel drive with rear differential lock. Crap.

OK. I get my F250 with 4 wheel drive and my 15 foot chain. We hook up, put it in low and I get her truck to move. The problem is I’ve only got a narrow gap to make it through a gate. It’s close, but no cigar. I stop. I look at the gate. I curse. I look some more. Finally, I go over to Barb. “We are going to need a professional. Let’s go inside and get warm.”

We go inside and shed our wet jackets. Cath has started a fire and we all settle in. I call Aaron’s towing and they are going to get the boss out in a couple of hours. We have lunch, Barb has a pick-up she’s suppose to do in Baltimore today, but that’s looking doubtful. She gives me the other key for Mike’s new tractor, and I sign that it’s arrived.

Time passes.

Cathy and Barb compare stories of taking care of their dying parents with home hospice. Barb, with her father, and Cathy, with her mom. The day has taken a couple of interesting turns, and is way off from what was expected this morning.

More time passes. The rain stops.

Finally, around 3:30PM, the tow truck arrives. It’s Conner, the owner of Aaron’s towing. We talk, and he takes a look. He’s a pro, you can just tell. He gets Barb’s truck pulled out fairly easy, but the 33 foot long trailer is a problem. It’s in the middle of the yard, and legs are buried in the mud that use to be our yard.

After a couple of false starts, Conner, the genius, figures out a way to get the front end of the trailer to the driveway, without tearing up the yard much worse. His plan works and miraculously, the goose neck is over the drive. Barb backs her truck up, we connect the trailer, and then Conner drives the truck and trailer free. Fifteen minutes later, after tearing up some more ground by our barn, Conner gets the truck and 33 foot trailer out the gate, and up the drive. As he passes me, he yells “Drive my truck up the drive! I’ll meet you at the road.” What? Never mind. I jump in his tow truck, tell Barb to get in the passenger seat and we drive up the drive and onto Enon School Road, where Conner has parked the truck on the side of the road. It’s now about 5:30PM.

It’s time to pay. Conner tells us the final price and Barb is going to pay. Except there’s a problem with her business card. It’s not the right type, or there’s not the right approval, or something else that I don’t quite understand. I try to call Mike (you remember Mike, it was his tractor that was on the trailer), but we have a bad connection. He says he will be there soon. A half hour later, Barb pulls out her personal credit card and gives it to Conner. About this time, Mike pulls up, ready to pay if needed. I tell him it’s OK.

By now, Conner’s internet isn’t working so well and the card info won’t transfer. Finally, Conner Says to Barb, follow me to Warrenton, and we’ll process the card there. She agrees, and they drive off. I look at Mike and say “I need a drink. Want to come to the house?” He agrees, and we proceed home. It’s 6:30PM and the day I never saw coming is finally over.

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Addendum:

If you ever need towing help in the Fauquier area, or the 66 corridor, I can’t recommend Aaron’s Towing enough. You can reach them at 540.253.7799.