Member-only story
Road Trip Humor
It Came from Rental Car Hell
Seven national parks and a nagging dashboard
We had planned this trip for months: three weeks of open road and seven national parks. Every hotel was booked. Every dinner was reserved. We rented a nice car from the company that tries harder, and our plane even landed on time. It was the most pre-planned vacation we’ve ever taken. It should have been an omen.
The rental desk was strangely empty. The agent was courteous, but there was something in his smile when he said, “Going from Phoenix to Denver, eh? Great trip. I’ve got just the car.”
We found the car, loaded our bags, adjusted the seat, and went to plug in my phone. Hmmm. No USB port, only USB-C. I’m not good with technology, and my iPhone 14 doesn’t use USB-C. But hey, we were still in Phoenix. We could find a store and get a cable.
We headed north on I-17 toward Sedona, hunting for the elusive USB-C to Lightning cable that would keep the phone charged and the navigation running. Ten minutes out, the Driver Alert dinged. A coffee cup icon lit the dash, suggesting I take a break. I know I’m old, but ten minutes? C’mon.
We obeyed the Ding and stopped at the next Walmart. We bought a cable, plus some wine for the hotel, and set off again. We hadn’t left the…
