Don't you hate it when....

Oh my goodness, I am entering another contest. Who'd of thunk it. Shelle over at Blok-thoughts is having a fun weekly contest called Don't you hate it when..... Go check out the entries, because they really are laugh out loud funny.

Here's my story titled "Anybody got a quarter?"

Don't you hate it when you have to take your invalid son to yet another doctor appointment.

We finish up around lunch time. We are both hungry. He wants McDonalds which makes me want to puke. I want Qdoba, just the most fabulous restaurant in the world. Especially the chips and guacamole.

Economic times being what they are, this also plays a role. Thanks to a most wonderful friend who was at a UNLV football game and gathered up a bunch of $5 Qdoba gift certificates, I figured I could get my lunch for free.

With much protest from son, I stopped at Qdoba first because it was closer and I was the one driving the car.

Here I encountered a nice if not so flexible employee. I asked for my chips and guacamole. That was $2.89. Way under $5, so I decided I could lived life large and ordered another side of guacamole. Now the total was $4.11.

Here's where the inflexibility comes in. That was all I wanted, but the guy said that the total had to be over $5 or he could not put the negative $5 coupon in. Good grief. I looked on the menu for something else.

He helpfully recommended a drink. I don't really like to get drinks. I don't even like soft drinks, just water for me. They are a big fat waste of money in my opinion. My kids hate this about me. So, OK in the interest of getting my free food, I will take a drink that I don't even want.

Now the total is $5.27. Great. Now the tricky/exasperating part. I don't have 27 cents. In fact thanks to pilfering kids, I have exactly one penny.

Resourcefully, I hand the guy my debit card. No Go , they can not do a debit transaction for 27 cents. Holy panic, batman.

I say, hold on I will go and look in my car. I search high and low, under floor mats, in crevices, and ash trays. So much fun.

Finally I score two dimes and two pennies, bringing my total to 23 cents.

I go back in and ask the guy, could this just please work. And mercifully he accepts.

And so I leave with my chips, guacamole, and drink.

I guess there is no such thing as a free lunch.