That Time The Police Showed Up

We have purposefully stayed close to home for two days now.  Not having any desire to go out and face the madness that has become the day after Thanksgiving.

Instead we have spent two days out in the garage making things.  Crafty things.   Fill our lungs with sawdust things.  Things that make me laugh when I paint my husband’s face on them.

Today I was covered in sawdust when my phone rang.  I stepped out of the garage where music blared, saw was roaring and grinding wheel spun.

I was talking to my mom.  Or rather, she was talking to me.  I had my back to the front of the house, I was walking around in the yard.  I turned and looked up to see a police officer standing there.

I said “mom”.    Mom kept talking.   No joke I yelled “mom” six or seven times before she heard me.  I told her I had a police officer standing in my yard looking at me and I should probably talk to him.  She asked me what he wanted.  I told her I didn’t know.   Hopefully she did not hear me roll my eyes.

I finally got off the phone with her.  The officer said “that sounds like me when I’m talking to my mom”.

He asked if my husband was here.  Okay, can’t lie.  A little bit of relief that I wasn’t being busted for something I didn’t know about.  A little bit of curiosity on what the heck did husband do.

I open the garage door and yell over the noise.  Husband comes out.

Officer asks Husband about an incident at the local gas station the day before.  My immediate reaction was….oh we didn’t leave.   Oops.  Yes he did.  To go buy me an energy drink.  And grape flavored water.  But the store didn’t have either of what I wanted.  So he got me different things.  Which has nothing to do with the story.  Other than I did not get what I wanted and I did not throw a fit.  That is a story all by it’s self but is worth a mention.

But when the officer asked him if he wanted to tell him about what happened and husband responded with yes I do.   I thought ‘what the hell!’

Husband told his version of a story.   Summary:  Husband pulls in to parking lot.   One car is parked in two places.  He is parked over the dividing line of the two places he is parked in, straddling the line with the car.  Husband tries to park in the space left without getting in the handicapped parking spot.  He had to stop.  The man was out side of his car and wouldn’t move.  So husband was going very slow.  He got in the spot, and as he inched his way in the mirror hit the man’s elbow.  Husband got out.  Asked man if he was okay.  Man said yes.  No problem.  He was leaving.   Husband goes in store.  End of story.

Until today when police officer shows up.

Officer checked the car, which has a collapsible mirror.  There was no dent or even a mark in the extremely dirty mirror shell.  Which will forever be an argument on my husband’s part to never wash the car again.   The officer said he didn’t put much weight in to the man’s story.    The man had left the store, drove to the police station and made a report.  The man did not have a mark, or a bruise, or anything on his elbow.   The officer said he asked the man if he had a cell phone.  Man said yes.  He asked why they didn’t call so they could have come to the store and talk with everyone when and where it happened.  The guy said he didn’t know.  The officer asked the man, and now my husband, if there was a confrontation.  Both said no.

The best part of the story was while the officer and my husband and I were talking we were discussing our different jobs (teaching, law enforcement, protective services).   I knew some questions to ask due to my job, on getting information and how to proceed from here.  The officer told us what to do.   Husband was not being cited.   Because of a comment the officer said about when he isn’t in uniform I said…

I can imagine you when you aren’t in your uniform, behind closed doors.

Before I said it.  While I was saying it.  While I’m looking at my husband and this officer….I knew how bad it sounded.

Husband just looked at me.

I covered.  Did a fine job of it too.   By telling him that was not what I meant.

Let’s just forget about where my mind may have wondered to.

Husband you are in big trouble for not telling me about this!!!