[at-l] Re: keys! was northbounder

[dachsnj@hotmail.com (Trail Dude)]

I moved into a new house this past December.  The locks on the doors allow 
you to open the door from the inside even when locked.  One day I 
accidentally walked out and forgot to unlock the door.  After thinking for a 
minute on how I would get back in I decided to check the sliding glass door 
on the deck.  It was locked too.  However, the lock is a lever lock and only 
had to be pushed down to unlock the door.  My two border collies, who 
abosolutely live for running, were inside.  So, I tried to get them all 
worked up and start scratching at the door.  I figured if I could get them 
high enough they would push the lever down with their paws.  So, there I was 
on my deck yelling "you wanna run?  Lets go, lets go".  My dogs were going 
nuts scratching at that door, getting within inches of the lock lever.  Well 
after about 10 minutes of this the dogs got frustrated and just sat back and 
started barking at the door.  I realized it wasn't going to work.  In a act 
of frustration I grabbed the handle of the door and gave it a violent shake 
and low and behold the lock lever dropped.  I went in got my daypack and 
took those pups out for a nice dayhike.





>From: kahley7 <kahley7@ptd.net>
>To: "Mark Hudson" <hudsom@us.ibm.com>, at-l@backcountry.net
>Subject: Re: [at-l] northbounder
>Date: Mon, 09 Apr 2001 09:20:27 -0500
>
>At 07:18 AM 4/9/01 -0400, Mark Hudson wrote:\
> >And to top the weekend off, I arrived back at the parking lot to find 
>that
> >the car door had quite closed all the way, and the dome light had been on
> >all weekend :  (.    Couldn't push the car through the mud and slush in 
>the
> >parking lot, or I would have roll started in down the hill, so I had to
> >call a tow truck for a jump start... oh well...
>
>Oh Skeeter.....bummer.....but it coulda been worse....
>There once was a hiker who was an absolutely perfect partner until he 
>replaced his ooold
>ford truck with a fancy new car and became sooooo concerned about his car 
>it not only
>disturbed his hike but anyone in the woods at the same time.  He'd lay 
>mothballs around
>it and still crawl under it to make sure the porky's hadn't gotten to it.  
>He worried that
>someone would  hit it or break into it or steal it.    And he worried that 
>he'd lose his keys.
>A slight exaggeration would be to say he'd get his keys out to check that 
>he still had them at
>least six times a day.  I showed him the cord around my neck which keeps my 
>keys, but
>he  said that would be too much of a bother....HA!
>
>One day, uncharacteristically, I was the one to start up trail first.  He 
>didn't pass
>me for a good half hour but I didn't ask what had delayed him.  The next 
>two
>days went fairly normally and very characteristically, he beat me back to 
>the
>car by a good hour.  When I hit the lot, I found him slumped. lumplike 
>against his
>car.  The rear passenger window was broken in and he was in tears.  Looked
>like his fears had come true...someone broke into the car.  All the times 
>he
>meticulously stripped everything from the car, even opening the glove box 
>so prospective
>thieves would see there was nothing to steal.....and some jerk had busted 
>in anyway.
>
>I didn't know what to say.......finally muttering "jerks...what freakin 
>jerks".  He just shook
>his head and I thought he mummered "No" through his tears.  I was trying to 
>be
>supportive, but was a little concerned about getting him on his feet and 
>hopefully
>in the car, with us on our way home.  Finally he looked up at me through 
>teary eyes and said.
>"I did it".
>
>He continued " I lost the keys...I don't know where.  You know I had them 
>this morning when
>we broke camp.  I had them at my first break too, I think, but I don't have 
>them now."
>
>"OK,"  I offered, "so you had to break your window to get to the 
>spares...bummer..but it could have
>happened to anyone."
>
>"No spares in there" he said softly.  "I was afraid someone would break in 
>and get the
>spares and steal the car"
>
>Beginning to worry I said, "So we have no spare?"
>
>"Oh we have spares" he said, pointing to the wheel behind his back.  "I was 
>afraid someone might
>be watching me hide the spares in the woods so I laid them on the ground 
>and parked the car on them."
>
>Poor guy.....having driven a 1960 era truck for so many years, he never 
>noticed that newer cars
>lock up the transmission and steering when you pull out the keys so he 
>thought he only need to
>pop a window to put the car in gear and push it off the keys....
>
>And i guess he never considered the the people watchnininthe woods could 
>see him drive onto
>his keys as well as they could see him hide the keys in the woods.  I'm 
>proud that I never
>pointed that out to him.  <g>  Fear can make you stupid sometimes.
>
>Loooong roadwalk......................
>
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