Month: October 2024

I do my best not to let life’s little injustices get the better of me, but sometimes people do stuff that really ticks me off. 

For instance, while recently getting gas at Sam’s Club, I watched someone deliberately enter from the wrong direction so the gas cap side of his car would be next to the pump. I’ve seen people do this time and again, and it annoys the crap out of me. All the Sam’s Club gas stations I’ve patronized are set up to have traffic go in one direction only. This wasn’t some arbitrary design decision. It’s meant to prevent congestion, and arrows to guide the drivers are clearly marked on the pavement. 

No one will argue the fact that it’s easier to fill the tank if you can pull up to a pump that’s on the same side as your gas cap, but it’s also usually feasible to fill up from a pump that’s on the other side of your car. It may be a bit awkward, but as long as you’re not in a really large vehicle, the hose is long enough to reach around where you need it. 

From what I’ve observed, gas caps are located on the driver’s side of most vehicles. Since some people prefer not to stretch the hose across their car, they’re patient enough to wait in line for a driver’s side pump…even if that line is pretty long. 

Now and then, though, I’ll see some yahoo decide to flex their sense of entitlement. They see an open pump on the other side, but instead of pulling up to it the way they’re supposed to, they whip around and enter from the wrong direction so their gas cap will cozy up nice and close to the nozzle. 

Of course, when they’re done, the only way they can leave is to back out because they can’t pull forward due to the waiting cars that are lined up properly. You know…the ones driven by people who understand that the rules apply to everyone. But backing out isn’t always easy because there may be folks in the way who have finished filling their own tanks and are actually following the arrows to leave.  

I guess what irritates me most about these “Wrong Way Corrigans” is that they seem to think they shouldn’t have to wait in line with the rest of us commoners. I realize no one enjoys waiting, but unless they’ve got a pregnant woman in the car who’s about ready to burst, they need to chill out with everyone else. 

Now, before you accuse me of being all high and mighty, let me be clear…I’ve broken more than a few rules in my time (Can we say “speed limit?”), and I’m sure I’ll break more. It’s not something to be proud of, but it is what it is. What I’m careful about, though, is not to consciously inconvenience others. That’s the part that bugs me.

So, if I don’t want to wait in a long line, and there’s a passenger-side pump open, I’ll pull up to it properly and wrestle that nozzle all the way around to the driver’s side so I can fill up. It may not be my favorite thing to do, but I’ve no intention of thumbing my nose at the rules. And I certainly don’t want to be in a position to make others wait while I try to extricate myself when I’m done.

If that makes me a goody-two-shoes, I’m cool with it. Pretty sure I got it from my mom.