We left Southern California. I believe, in the car, was my father, my mother, my uncle, Larry, myself. It might have been another brother or sister. Anyway, the car was full. We had everything in the trunk, as well. And, the funeral was going to be in Roosevelt, Utah, where he was living.
We got to Provo. In the middle of Provo Canyon, we got a flat tire. We all piled out of the car into the cold dark night, and unloaded the trunk to find the jack and spear tire, got the trunk unloaded, the jack out, spare tire out. And, lo and behold, the spare tire was flat, as well.
So, my uncle Larry and myself, I was, probably, 16 at the time, maybe, 17, anyway, we took one of the wheels, the tire and hitchhiked to get to the next town, which was Heber City, some, I don't know, 20 miles up the road. I don't know how far to Provo Canyon we were when the tire went flat. When we got there, there was a gas station open, which we were grateful for, and took the tire in. And, the guy said, yes, he'd fix it, and he'd have it ready in a little bit. So, my uncle Larry and I, we went into a little diner attached to the service station. Back then, service stations, they would pump the gas for you, check your oil, check your water, and check your battery, and air in your tires. Well, we went in, sat down, and he said order something to eat, and we both looked at the menu. And, I saw, on the menu, there was chili and I ordered chili. I don't remember what he had.
Wasn't too long after we finished eating that the tire was ready to go, and there was somebody close by that was driving south through Provo Canyon and offered to give us a ride back to the car. So, we thanked them, and they took us down. And, once we got there, we were able to change the tire and put everything back in the trunk, and drove back up to Heber City and went in the same service station to thank the guy. And, maybe, we had him fix the other tire. And, while we were waiting, we went into the little diner, and my mother looked at the menu, and she said to the waitress I'll have a bowl of chili. And, the waitress looked at her and said I'm sorry we just ran out. Some young man just got the last bowl of chili. And so, she missed the chili, but we kept on going and got to Roosevelt later that night.