and with a busted cell phone to boot

We all look forward to spring, don't we? I am less than thrilled about the allergy meds 24/7, but if there's one thing i love, it's being out in the fresh air, no matter how much I sneeze. This spring has been particularly kooky with the cold winter chill still around and below average rainfalls; when it does rain, it comes in torrential downpours. With spring comes longer, warmer days and the promise of an awesome camping season. I love sitting around a campfire...I especially love the way my hair and clothes smell after an evening of starlight, moonlight and firelight. My Girl Scout troop is planning a trip this weekend, and I have a monster list of shopping to do today. No, don't leave. I swear this gets better.

So I'm out doing the grocery shopping thing with my windows cranked down and the music cranked up. The only thing to spoil my beautiful afternoon so far, is that it is going to end soon. Until now. A perfect afternoon can only be enhanced by sucking cancer from a little burning stick and blowing it around to share with everyone within 20 feet. Of course. I am soooo missing out on this one, so the guy in the car in front of me decides to help me out. A disgusting blast of cigarette smoke blows in through my open window. As I press the button to close off the attack of the stinking zephyr, I watch the jackass flip his butt (what an attractive name for something you put in your mouth by the way...) into the mulch and drive away.

At first glance, yes, someone dropped a butt and it was still smoking. One blink and it was no longer a butt. It became a burning pile of debris and it was headed underneath someone else's car. Holy mother of cows. I jumped out of my car (leaving the door open, how very foolish!!) and started stomping on the fire, which is now about a foot wide and has flames licking 6 inches into the air. Yeah. It took me longer to type that sentence than it did for that stupid asshat's cancer-stick to cause a major problem. I managed to stop the flames, but the mulch was still smouldering, so I ran to the trunk of my van to get some water. I always keep a liter of water in the car for any use but drinking. I have used it in the past to wash ice cream off of sticky cheeks and fingers (Baskin-Robbins napkins are soooo worthless, in case you didn't know). I have used it to rinse off scrapes at the playground, and to dump on hot softball players heads. Today I got to use it to play fire-fighter. Meanwhile the light has turned green, people are honking and trying to drive around me and no one else has seen the fire. So they think I'm just sitting here playing Chinese Fire Drill all by myself!!

I glugged the bottle into the smoking gutter until the very last drops dribbled out. I twisted the cap back on, vowing to refill the thing as soon as I got home. I just glanced at the bottoms of my shoes, and guess what? I need a new pair. As I'm sitting here telling my story, I can just barely detect a whiff of smoke on my clothes. Smells like teen spirit? Nope.