I was out having dinner near my housing area. As it was right smack during dinner hour, there was hardly any parking spot. By the time I finally found a nice spot, it was late and I hungry. I quickly chomped down my food and hurriedly went over to a bakery shop to get some buns and breads before I headed home.
I inserted my car keys into the ignition and realised to my horror, my car refused to start.I blinked a couple of times before it finally dawned on me what had happened.
"Oh no!", I thought to myself.
"Not again!"
This was probably the second time my car broke down in a span of three months and the last time it broke down on the highway, I had just dropped off a visiting friend at his hotel. I managed to get my car towed back to the workshop for it to be fixed.
I immediately picked up my phone and contacted my mechanic who advised me to call a tow truck to tow my car back to the workshop. It was better to tow the car there than to leave it by the road shoulder. I agreed.
After a couple of tries, dialling the toll-free number, I managed to report the breakdown and inform the customer service officer of my exact location before putting the phone down. I was told, it would take an hour and 45 minutes before the tow truck will arrived. Left with no choice, I just sat in the car and waited. After half an hour later, I received a confirmation call from the tow truck driver that he was on his way. By the time he arrived and I flagged him down, it was another half hour gone.
Since my car was parked by the road shoulder and it wasn't obstructing any cars, it was much easier to tow my car. However, the tow truck driver needed my help to direct the oncoming cars to the next lane to avoid a minor bottleneck at the exit. For a split second, I panicked as I had no prior experience in being a traffic marshall and wondered what kind of hand signal I should even used in case a speeding car failed to break on time. But someone's got to do it anyway.
So there I was...using my hands, fingers and whatever trying to direct the oncoming buses, cars and even motorcyclists who sped past me to use the alternative route instead. By then, I had attracted a significant amount of stares by curious onlookers. There was even a point where a car stopped just right behind the tow truck as the tow truck driver was trying to adjust the hook below my car carriage.
A blurry photo of my car being towed
I walked over to the driver's window to inform the male driver that my car is being towed now (duh!) and they should used the next lane.
Instead, to my surprise the driver answered me calmly in Cantonese "It's OK. I just want to have a look".
I blinked again. "You just want to have a what....????"
"Oh my! You haven't seen a car being towed before?", I thought to myself.
Had it been me, I would have happily taken the next road and be on my way home.
I wasn't sure if I should be laughing my head off or be amused at the antics of my fellow Malaysians.
I used to wonder why Malaysians loved to slow down their car whenever they passed by an accident scene causing a massive jam lasting several kilometres or why they will be the first to whip out their camera phones to record the whole accident (including their own video commentaries too!) instead of going to render aid to the victims. Or worst! We have the opportunist and the 4D punters who would slow down their just to note down your car license plate to place a bet in hopes that they will strike it big in lottery.
Is it just a typical Malaysian behaviour or it is merely human nature that is curious and inquisitive by nature?
It took the tow truck driver another half hour before it finally arrived at my mechanic's workshop. By the time I found a Grab car and got home it was already past 11 pm.
What a night it was...
KarinzDailyGrind is often intrigued by human nature and strive to understand what makes people tick. When she is not powering up her day with a Steeming cuppa black coffee, she blogs about life, productivity, marketing, psychology and entrepreneurship on Steemit.
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Oh NOOOOO love! Sorry to hear that. At least you're safe though! That's the main thing. X
Its just wasn't the evening that you expected, from finding that parking spot right to the traffic diversion stunt. I hope your car is fixed now and @yasminep is right safety is the main thing specially for ladies. Wish you a great week ahead @karinzdailygrind!
Oh well, everything happens for a reason @zestforlife. You win some and you lose some. I guessed this incident served as a good reminder to me to always take care of my ol'faithful and to make sure I serviced it regularly else I will need to pay a "hefty fine" for Grab fares. You have a marvellous week too!
Yup, thank God my car didn't break down in the middle of the highway late at night. Else it could have been worst...
That's very true. Please stay safe, lovely lady!
You ask if it's Malaysian behavior or human behavior. It may be both.
In the U.S., I've driven plenty of times in traffic that was slowed because of a wreck or stalled vehicle on either side of the road. Some of that on the same side had to do with getting around the vehicle in question, but of course we look as we go by. Sometimes, it's basically unavoidable.
However, the traffic going in the opposite direction that has no reason to slow down or stop doesn't make much sense other than, they too, want to look.
That said, I can't say I've had the experience where someone purposefully got behind a vehicle about to be towed just to have a closer look. At what?!
Generally, if someone stops here it's to render assistance, or to call for it. We did end up on the side of the road on a busy freeway with a flat tire where the people behind us jumped out and basically replaced the flat one with the spare. I'm sure they were doing it to be nice, but since we were holding up traffic behind us, that probably had something to do with it, too.
It's always good when these kind of events have happy endings. Hopefully, too, you can get your vehicle running smoothly to the point this doesn't have to happen again.
Oh well, I guessed it's not just a Malaysian phenomenon after all yeah..
It us good to note that in US, there are people who stopped their cars to render assistance to others on the road. In Malaysia, after several mugging incidents being widely reported in the press people are much wary these days of helping one another. Some even outrightly asked for a compensation in exchange for help.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting @glenalbrethsen
It's too bad about the muggings while trying to help people. Things like that will change human behavior quickly.
We have our share of bad people, too. I live in a rural area, so people here are still likely to get out and help. In the higher urban areas, though, more people just want to be on their way and stay out of things.
At any rate, be safe out there.
Yes, precisely. We will need to exercise our own judgment and caution before rendering help
I can imagine you directing traffic .. glad you are ok :). I remember when our car broke down on the Plus highway. This is after the Raya hols so traffic was pretty heavy. And I caught it on video .... We were waiting on the emergency lane for the tow-truck and so before our car traffic was bumper to bumper, once past our car it eased up tremendously. On that day, we were the show .... haha
Hhhhmmmm...no wonder i think i saw some Facebook video on my timeline that look suspiciously like you and your kids! Haha..just joking!
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First, sorry for the proton breakdown. It used to be named this way
Powerwindow Rosak Oh Tidak Oh No!
Now, it seemed they extended their strength in breakdown from power window alone to some other parts. Wish your lil proton get well soon and serve you well. Touchwood, my plotongs so far none of them breakdown on me, other than 1 time flywheel event.
2ndly, congratulations on OCD upboat! Blessing in disguised. If not due to the potong breakdown, this post wouldn't have been created. 😂
😂ROFL! I can always count on you @davidke20 for a good round of laughter. I absolutely have no idea on the PROTON acronym until you mentioned it here..Coincidentally, my powerwindow oso needs some oiling dy..
My good ol' faithful is back with me now after a full day body check up at the hospital. Pls pray that it will behave well. Flywheel???? God forbid!
Yes, it is my first time being upboated by @ocd after so long. It was certainly a good surprise. Have a Good Friday!