We are nearing forty-eight hours without electrical service now, but Claudia is eating a bowl of ice cream from our freezer. It was still frozen hard enough that it was difficult for her to scoop – thanks to dry ice.
Yesterday, word was circulating in our neighborhood that Praxair, which is nearby, was selling dry ice at reduced cost as their way of helping the community deal with the inconvenience that had been inflicted upon the people of our town by a damaging storm. So, we grabbed a couple of coolers, hopped in the truck and drove the short distance to the Praxair store. Prior to this time, I didn’t know this store existed, even though the factory had been there long before my birth. There was a gentleman ahead of us who was completing his purchase who, knowing that the dry ice was selling below cost, jokingly asked if there might be a senior citizen veteran discount. Claudia quickly chimed in, asking if there might be a discount for Praxair stockholders. I further inquired if there might be a discount if my wife’s father had retired from Praxair. She is and he did. The man behind the counter took it in stride of course.
When the gentleman ahead of us paid his bill, he asked that the change be put in a kitty if there was one. The man behind the counter said he would put it in their military service fund. I knew right then that I would do the same. It was our turn next. The man behind the counter told us we would need five squares, the cost would be $16. I handed him a twenty dollar bill and quickly told him to put the change in the military service fund. As he handed me the receipt, he told me that I had just purchased $80 worth of dry ice. To further show my gratitude, I peeled out a $5 bill and asked him to add it to the fund as well. He thanked us and directed us to the loading dock to pick up our dry ice.
The man on the loading dock said he could get two squares of dry ice in one little cooler and maybe three in the other. Just then, the man behind the counter approached and told the man on the loading dock, “these folks contributed to our military service fund,” turned and went back into the store. The man on the loading dock looked at my second cooler and said, “I don’t think that will work. Let me put the remainder in a cardboard box that is large enough instead. It will be okay.” He soon returned with a box, tightly packed, with the top carefully folded over. As he handed the box to me, he said, “I put a little something extra in there for you,” and gave a little wink. When we got home, I discovered a sixth square of dry ice.
I’m sure that during these past seventy-two hours, there have been many “good turns” that have brought about many more “good turns”. I never would have thought that purchasing something as cold as dry ice could have been such a heart-warming experience.
July 15, 2015
Grampy Lash 