For the first time in a long time, I got to the South Bay Knitters group tonight; we did the usual talking about our knitting and showing off and chatting…
…Sometimes, when you need a chance to laugh, one that comes with a serious oh-my-goodness wince will do.
Somehow the subject got onto stolen cars. To my surprise, several people there had tales to tell.
And then one woman told her son’s story and totally took the prize.
Now, anybody who lived in this area during the Loma Prieta quake in ’89 remembers where they were, and the news stories and places have their own instantly-recognized buzzwords in the local culture.
Her son had gone with a few friends to watch the World Series–the one my dad was watching on TV, when all the sudden the camera did this weird shaky-shake as the announcer exclaimed, “Hey! I think we’re having an earth!–” and the screen went blank.
Her son and friends were there at Candlestick Park, looking around to see if that was just the crowd somehow being that raucous in the stands? But no. The place was ordered evacuated; there was no way to know how damaged the stadium might be, and no way no how were the teams going to continue playing baseball that night.
So they went to go pile in the Jeep and go home.
Only, it wasn’t there.
They called the cops and apologized, going, “I know, right now of all times, you have more important things you’re worrying about, but…”
Her kid got a call back some weeks later. They’d found the car!
“But I don’t think you want it back.”
An intrigued, puzzled, “Where did you find it?”
“On the Cypress Structure.”