“Fill Up While You Wait!” — How the order of one truck driver and a lively waitress made a story worth telling
It was a cold morning on the outside of a little town, the kind where the highways are long, the coffee is hot, and the diner is always open. As a large rig rolled into the parking lot of a truck stop café just off Interstate 40, the door jingled open. A truck driver strolled in, took off his hat, and sat down at the counter. His boots were dirty, and his flannel shirt was crumpled from being on the road for hours.
Heather, the new waitress on duty, was eager and excited. She was determined to impress because it was only her second week working the morning rush. She handed the trucker a menu with bright eyes and a smile, but he waved it aside.
“Give me three flat tires, a set of headlights, and some running boards.”
Heather blinked her eyes. She looked down at her pad and was confused. Was this a special breakfast for mechanics?
She wrote it down just as he said and stepped into the kitchen, trying not to look too confused. She said to the short-order cook behind the griddle, “Hey, Joe, there’s a guy at the counter who just asked for three flat tires, two headlights, and some running boards.” Is he under the impression that we’re a car repair shop?
Joe laughed and flipped a pancake with the ease of someone who has done it for thirty years. “No, no, that’s just what truckers say, dear. Three flat tires are like pancakes. Headlights are like sunny-side-up eggs. What are running boards? Those represent two slices of crispy bacon.
Heather laughed, feeling both relieved and funny. “That’s something new for me.”
She had an idea while she was putting the order together. She went to the warmer, picked up a small dish of baked beans, and put it on the tray with the rest of the food.
She put the plate in front of the trucker when she got back to the counter, and he grinned. But then he saw the additional bowl.
He raised an eyebrow and said, “What are the beans for?”
Heather leaned in and smiled so brightly that it could light up the jukebox.
“While you’re waiting for your flat tires, headlights, and running boards, you might as well fill up your gas tank!”
The truck driver laughed so hard that he almost vomited out his coffee. A couple of regulars at the corner booth heard and laughed too, shaking their heads.
He nodded in agreement and gave her a big tip. “Now that’s what I call good service,” he added. “I’ll be back tomorrow for a full tune-up.”
Someone took a picture of the happy waitress and the trucker still laughing into his coffee before the moment disappeared. It wound up on social media with the words “Best roadside stop this side of Tennessee.”
Later on that day… Another Heather Moment with a Trucker
Heather did some errands around town after her flight. She saw a salt truck carefully spreading grit on the road as she came to a stop at a red light. She was curious and saw something strange: little bits seemed to be dropping off the rear. She thought quickly and drew up next to the vehicle, honked, and rolled down her window.
The man turned, and she yelled above the wind, “Hello!” You are losing some of your load, and my name is Heather.
The truck driver blinked, waved his hand in a bewildered way, and the signal went green. They both kept driving.
They stopped at another light a few blocks later. She pulled up next to him again.
“Hey! Hey, it’s me again—Heather! “Your load is still falling!”
No answer. When the light turned green, they just nodded and rolled forward.
Heather was determined to make her warning plain by the third light. She waved her arms wildly, rolled down the window again, and said, “Hi!” “Hi, I’m Heather.”
Finally, the driver opened his window, grinned, and said, “Hi, Heather.” I’m Kevin. There is snow. “I’m driving a truck full of salt.”
There was a break. Heather then laughed, both ashamed and impressed. She gave him a thumbs-up and said, “Okay, Kevin, go ahead.”
As the light turned green, they both laughed, and Kevin waved goodbye before driving away with a smile.
It’s not always the destination that gives us the best memories; it’s the unexpected stops along the way. Heather’s day showed one thing:
A cup of beans, a decent heart, and a sharp wit may go a long way.