A belated but pertinent and VERY positive review, and shout out, to Joe's Auto & (more…read morespecifically) Towing, to both the woman who answered my emergency call and to Andrew, the fella who saved the day, and evening, for me.
On 11/7/20, I played 18 up at Butter Brook Golf Course in Carlisle.
After finishing, I spent a few minutes talking to my Lexington-bound before he hit the road. It was near sunset at that point. As I walked toward my car a departing female employee walking toward hers asked if I owned the white 1998 Volvo up ahead. At that point, there were only three other cars in the lot--hers, another, and my Volvo.
I nodded, and she said, "You're tire exploded!"
I'm, like, huh? But, as I get nearer to my car, there it is--a flat right front tire.
"Yeah," she added. "It just popped! We all heard it."
Knowing I had a fully-inflated spare in the trunk, I told her I'd be on the road in less than five minutes.
By the time she pulls out, I'm the only one left in the lot.
I instantly discover that the single-socket 12" long lug nut wrench supplied by Volvo was ridiculously ineffective and despite heroic efforts I couldn't budge one wheel stud. Not. One. I had no leverage. I tried so hard I bent the damn wrench handle!
So then I'm thinking, because I DO live in Dorchester and I DON'T know ANYONE in the Carlisle area, I'm...dead in the water.
I make two quick phone calls to the nearest auto repair places, one has no tow truck, the other cannot help--no driver that day.
I expand my search and dial up Joe's. A very pleasant and busy but patient woman answers and advises that their one tow person has "like ten calls going right now." I provide my phone #, my location and add that all I need is a one-minute pit stop: loosen five lug nuts.
The woman says, "I'll see what I can do."
Two minutes later my cell phone rings and it's Joe's tow truck driver, Andrew, an amiable kid who listens to my quick story and decides, on the spot, while driving to his next destination, "I'll be there in ten, you're in between where I am now and my next stop."
Ten minutes later, Andrew wheels into BB-GC's parking lot just as the sun begins to set. Knowing what's needed, he hops out of tow truck, grabs the pneumatic air pump, and hits the studs. Then he wheels over a portable hydraulic lift, jacks me up and leaves me to handle putting on the spare while he writes up the bill.
He replaces his pump and jack, hands me the receipt, agrees that Volvo's worthless lug nut wrench might come in handy as a paperweight, accepts my $20 tip, and zips out of the lot toward his next emergency.
1. The woman could've told me, "We're too busy." And hung up.
2. Andrew could've just blown me off, and never called.
Both refreshed my belief in and of "paying it forward."
My Dad was a mechanic. He taught me how to do the simple repairs that keep cars on the road. Over the years, I've probably pulled off road and helped at least a dozen or so people who were stranded on roadsides, either changing their flats or giving them a jump or, at the very least, getting them to where they were going to be okay.
What comes around, goes around, folks.
Do the right thing. It'll come back to you, and it'll go forward.
My thanks to Andrew, and the kind woman who answered my call.
It is no surprise that the majority of Joe's reviews are positive.
Happy Holidays!!!
