When I got to the other end of the line, I was met by a delightful new friend who was on the planning team for the event. We had donuts, picked up a third rider and made our way further north. All was good.
On Wednesday afternoon, it was time to go home. Through no body's fault, I missed my train. No problem, another one always comes along. Unfortunately, Amtrak thinks that not all trains have the same value, so in order to get home, I could pay anywhere from $50 to $12 in additional costs. I went for the later, cheaper train, knowing that this now meant I did not have to make dinner! However, I have dawdled over replacing my ATM card. It was fraudulently used to attempt a purchase of $400 worth of something from QVC. So after I paid for my new train ticket, I no longer had enough cash to get my car out of the parking lot.
My husband was going to be mad.
Or at least righteously indignant. I had procrastinated and now I was in a fix. He was going to have to come bail me out. That's when something good happened.
I explained my dilemma to the parking lot attendant. I had no expectations, I just wanted to find out how much the bill was going to be. I was nearly twenty dollars short. I prepared to go back to my car and wait for my husband to rescue me, when the attendant started to look around her booth. She called her manager and after a very brief, matter of fact conversation, he forgave my debt.
I had pulled one of my business cards out so that I could write an IOU. Now these are not my serious cards. These are my "go play and make new friends" cards. On the back of each one is a word.The one at the top of the pile was GRACE. I don't know if the attendant made the connection, but I certainly did. As she read my IOU she said, "I wouldn't worry about it. I think once you drive away that's the end of it." She wasn't cheery. She didn't smile, but I thanked her for her graciousness and headed for home.
If you need a place to park near the 30th Street Station, I strongly recommend Parkway at JFK Blvd and 30th Street.
