Exceptional Of course! Logical! by Wendy G

Time for our road trip! We set out eagerly, with everything we needed for the next fortnight in the car. Including, of course, our dog! A few hours later we pulled into the first of what would be many comfort stops –  for us, and for Sunny. Although the rest area was near the highway, it was very pleasant and secluded, nestled among the gum trees. No-one else around. Very peaceful.  After a short break, it was time to keep going. We had hundreds of kilometres to drive before nightfall. My husband pressed the car remote to unlock the car. Nothing happened. Pressed again. And again. Nothing.  “We’ll have to call a locksmith, one who can help with car remotes,” I offered. No answer. My remote was in my handbag, locked inside the car, as was my mobile phone. His phone was also in the car …. Usually I keep my handbag with me at all times, but Sunny had needed to get out quickly.  He kept jabbing at the remote button. Finally, on about the twentieth try, we heard a satisfying click. The car had unlocked. I resolved to keep my handbag with me at all times.  Why did Richard not want to use my remote with car key after that? It must be a man thing.  And so the pattern continued for many days. Jab, jab, jab at the remote. Several times a day. Sometimes it took only ten jabs if we were lucky, usually more.  Why not leave the car unlocked during our brief stops? We were nearby, after all. Can I explain man logic?  Meanwhile I held onto my handbag. Mild anxiety accompanied me every time we stopped. After an enjoyable lunch break in a small remote country town, we were ready to go again. A look of dismay crossed his face.  “What’s wrong?” I queried, perhaps with just a slight note of impatience. “The unlock button has fallen out of the remote!” So around and around he went, looking high and low for a small black button, about half a centimetre in diameter, retracing his steps anywhere he might have walked during our break. Unsuccessful. Would he like to use my remote key?  “No thanks, I have a solution,” he replied. Out from his pocket he retrieved a pencil, and with its point, he jabbed at the remote, where the button used to be. Success!  What if he forgot his pencil one day? A sensible question, I thought. “Then I’ll have to find a sharp stick,” was the reply. Of course! Why wouldn’t I think of that? My remote remained unused, still in my handbag. And so our trip continued.  Now we are safely back home. “We’ll have to find a locksmith! We need to get a new remote,” I suggested.  Not at all.  “We can use yours, and this can just be a spare. But we will need to remember to take a pencil!” I recounted this story to our fifteen-year-old grandson.  “But the key still works,” he replied, “and there is a key lock on the driver’s side! You don’t need the remote control. Just unlock the car manually, like in the olden days!” So no, we don’t need to call a locksmith. We never needed to call a locksmith. Recognized Author Notes We have had this car for ten years, and never noticed or used the old-fashioned method! Must be getting old. Australian spelling and punctuation used throughout. In Australia, locksmiths also look after car remotes. Half a centimetre is about a quarter of an inch.

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