Sunday Surprise

Labor Day Weekend

As if hosting friends weren’t stressful enough, I got a surprise this morning – requiring my immediate attention!

Night on the Town

David, Jovan and Sharon arrived to San Francisco Saturday afternoon.

It was the yawn heard around the world. Sharon got the nerve to be the one pushing e’erybody to go out for “just a drink or two” and now she’s sleepy. #unacceptable

I have known each of them since 1999. We’ve been friends since my first year in graduate school while attending Emerson College in Boston. You know how it goes; careers, life, family and work have taken each of us to different corners of the world, but we make it a point to check-in as often as possible. I feel fortunate that we have stayed connected over the years – and I have the extra room for the “occasional” out-of-town guest.

Fresh Muffins for all

Y’all need to know, I’ve been a customer since 2006. Noe Valley Bakery consistently ranked as one of San Francisco’s best, is always a crowd pleaser.

Excellence in fresh baked handcrafted yumminess.

I decided early this morning that I would start Sunday with a trip here. It continues to be one of my favorite bakeries to pick up fresh yumminess. All of their goods are made daily and by hand.

?

Inexpensive for the quality. Great birthday cakes, but my all out favorite…their cinnamon buns. When in San Francisco, you must visit one of our city’s finest.

Wait! What? 

As I was heading back to my car, the guy parked behind me, called out.

I can see what is believed to be a nail sticking from my tire. #curses

“Yo!” He said, “Bro, your tire looks a lil’ low, you’re may have a flat.”

Ouch! This was a Sunday surprise I did not want.

Make no mistake, a flat tire is always a nuisance. At best, they’re inconvenient. At worst, they’re costly and potentially dangerous.

However, spending years as a reporter, stuck in news vans that often breakdown or get flat tires regularly, I knew what to do immediately.  There are an assortment of aftermarket emergency flat tire repair products that hold the promise of getting you back on the road quickly, without having to mount a spare tire or call a tow truck.  Given this is a holiday weekend – with no garages open on a Sunday, I knew this would be my best course of action.

Fix A Flat

To be clear, these types of products have been around for years. They work by pumping a sealant into a flat tire, plugging small punctures from the inside.

Well, can ya see this?

I’ve learned that their popularity has been accelerating as they become common-place on new cars, where they are replacing the traditional spare tire (the donut) for sake of weight and fuel consumption savings.

Emergency Repair Kit

According to the Fix A Flat website, their sealant works by, “coating the inside of the tire and wheel with a messy residue, which a tire shop has to clean out, possibly causing extra expense.”

A headache? To be sure – but much better than the alternative. Crossing my fingers that it will enough to get me through the holiday weekend!