By RTF Staff Writer Jamin Goecker

A lot of instances come to mind when I try to think about something funny that’s happened to me.

There’s the time I misheard someone on the phone when I took a message, so I told a lady that the Secret Service wanted to talk to her.

There’s the first time I drove a manual transmission on the streets. Got rear-ended.

There’s the time I became a “fisher of men” when I hooked a complete stranger in the hand while I was casting.

My personal favorite, however, would be the time I locked myself out of my car and used a slim jim to get inside.

A little while ago I decided I’d get up and go running in the Texas brush instead of on the streets in city limits. So I persuaded my ‘91 Honda to carry me about 5 miles out of town to a lake where few people ventured in the morning.

The soft dirt felt good under my feet as I ran along in the crisp morning air, and I enjoyed the solitude of the place.

After about 30-40 minutes, I walked back to my car, stretched, and tried opening my car door. My heart raced faster than when I’d been running as I glanced inside and saw my keys sitting on the seat, less than 2 feet away!

My running shorts don’t have pockets, so apparently I had locked my car door and pitched the keys inside without even a second thought. Till now.

After performing the ritual dance for the occasion (berating myself, prying at the door, crying on the car hood), I started going a little crazy, likely because it was getting hotter by the minute and I’d already drunk all my water.

I looked at the cracked windshield. I’m going to need to replace that glass anyway…

I turned around and saw a guy rumbling up in his truck and towing his speedboat. The thought of telling someone (especially another guy) that I’d locked myself out of my car was almost unbearable, but I manned up and asked for help.

The guy asked me if I wanted a slim jim.

“No thanks,” I said, thinking, do I look so stressed that he thinks I need comfort food?

It turns out a slim jim is not just a piece of jerky. It’s also a kit with various hanger-like instruments for unlocking cars. That’s good. I had a hard time picturing myself trying to unlock the rebellious car with a piece of dried beef. “It’s not working! Throw me some teriyaki.” Why the guy had one I don’t know, nor did I feel like asking.

We got the door unlocked, eventually, and I had something to talk about for a few days. Plus, the guy told me some places where I could get a slim jim get of my own.

Jamin Goecker is enjoying his first semester of college, but enjoys running, lifting weights, playing guitar and writing even more! Some day he hopes to be a missionary, hopefully in Africa. You can find his blog here: Scribe-jamin.blogspot.com