Tonight was great. Dan came over at 4:15, we went as a family to the home/garden expo in Omaha. We walked around together looking at things, both of us with our rings on, the kids with us, I am sure we looked like quite the little family to the vendors we talked to.
Then we left at 8:30 to find our car had been towed, first time in my life to experience that. Dan got instantly irate and was swearing in front of the kids, I told him to calm down. While he fumed I got out my cell phone and called the towing company.
They said that they did not release cars after 8 pm until the following day. I pulled the "we are from out of town and I am standing in the street with two small children in the freezing cold in the dark" bit. The guy agreed to release our car "just this once" if we could get him $180 cash that night. I said we could and he told me where they were, seven miles away!
So I did the "how can I get seven miles away when I have no car?" He tried to tell me that I could get a cab, I said I couldn't get a cab b/c I had two small children with no car seats since they were in my towed car...
The guy took pity on me and sent his tow truck driver over to come and get me! We had walked to a hotel nearby so the kids could stay warm on the couches in the lobby...
The dispatcher said if we came to get it and we were irate or demanding he would not release the car until tomorrow, the reason they don't normally release cars after 8 is b/c they get belligerent drunk people in there picking fights and once he was even robbed...
So I told all of this to Dan and he said he was irate. So I said I would go. So all 5'3" of me rode in the car with a 300 lb. tow truck driver named Darrel, seven miles to the bad part of town to meet 3 other men in a building so I could get my car back. I was very calm the whole time, throwing a fit would do me no good and I wouldn't get my car back anyway.
I never drive in Omaha so once I left the impound lot I had no clue where I was. But, my phone has a navigation system in it so I typed in the hotel name and made it back unharmed. I was pretty pleased with myself, I was the calm one in the situation, and did everything to get our car back except go to the atm in the hotel lobby, Dan did that. And he waited in the lobby with our kids. I would consider that a 180 b/c I am not usually the take-charge person in those types of situations.
Part of me knows I should be pissed that my husband allowed me to go off in a tow truck at night with some strange man to an unsafe part of town. He said he wouldn't be able to keep his cool about paying 180 to get our car back. Well, that is pretty sad to think he has no trouble dropping $200 at the strip clubs but was fuming to pay that so we could get our kids home safely...I just found it disappointing that he was still playing the victim card, pissed about our car when he was the one who parked in a tow zone!
Oh well. We made it back all safe and sound and the kids are in bed now. Dan just left to go to his house and do some more work. It is strange when we were at the expo and looking at flooring and countertops he was asking me which colors and styles I liked, as if it really mattered...
