Too Tire-d To Care

I had a small leak in one of my tires, requiring a refill every week or so until I had the time to get it fixed. Since this was the same as the interval for refueling, it didn’t bother me too much, until one of those times I stopped at a gas station and the following happened.

The air pumps there were always free to use (since it’s considered a safety issue), and the downside of this was that it was not unusual to see the pump out of order.

I stopped at the pump (which was turned on, as usual), set the pressure, and attached the hose. Only when I couldn’t hear the compressor kicking in after several seconds did it dawn on me that it was not actually functional, and since there was no pressure in the tank, it drained my tire instead of filling it, making it completely flat.

After some swearing, I figured I had just enough pressure left to crawl to another gas station across the street. But, trying to be a decent person, I went to the station’s convenience store to inform the clerk of the issue, so other drivers would not have the same problem.

Me: “Hey, just so you guys know, the air pump isn’t working properly. You may want to put a sign on it or something.”

Clerk: “Oh, we know.”

Me: “You… know?”

Clerk: “Yeah, it’s been like that for a while.”

Me: “And you didn’t think to put a sign, or at least turn it off completely?”

The clerk stares at me blankly for a couple of seconds.

Clerk: “I don’t know. What’s the harm, anyway? Just go to the other station.”

Me: *Dumbfounded* “You are aware of the fact that when the air tank is empty and someone connects the hose to his tires, it actually removes any air they had left in them? I came here with a drivable car, and now I have a flat!”

Clerk: “Oh.”

Me: “…”

Clerk: “…”

And that was that. No apology — I didn’t actually expect one — and a look that was a mix of “So, I was wrong, who cares?”, “What do you expect me to do with that?”, and “It’s still not my problem.”

I swear, some people are not only incapable of doing the bare minimum of their jobs but also of caring the slightest about other people.