Cars, Trucks and Other Things With Wheels

This is from the Wasthington State Department of Ecology Vehicle Emissions Testing Department Website:

"If your vehicle is missing a gas cap, it will need to be replaced before the vehicle can be tested. "

WHY are people driving around without their gas caps???? More importantly, how did this become an important enough concern that they had to post it in the FAQ section of the emissions testing page?? If you lose your gas cap, isn't it a priority to buy a new one....RIGHT AWAY?
I will forever wonder just what percentage of Washington drivers have lost their gas caps and not bothered to replace them.

This is in the same vein as the very nice woman who rolled down her window at a stoplight and called across to me "Your car is leaking! You're leaking gas!!"
It was Easter Sunday and I was on my way to Jon's parents house and running a few minutes late. I was also in the middle of four lanes of traffic and didn't smell any gas fumes. I knew that if I WERE leaking gas, the fumes would be coming into my car and my gas gauge would be dropping. I pulled over at the next Zip Trip, left the car running, and walked around it to check for anything dripping out. There was nothing. However, it had been frosty that morning and the end of the exhaust pipe looked wet. I can only surmise that this woman saw the condensation dripping from the end of my exhaust pipe, which is perfectly normal, and CONCLUDED THAT I WAS LEAKING GAS!!!!

I'm sure she is a sweet woman, and I appreciate her kind heart...but she scared the heck out of me for a few minutes...and she needs to learn the difference between the gas tank and the exhaust pipe!!!!!

Now, I must admit, that although I claim to be in good control of my vehicle, I'm sorta clueless about Washington traffic laws. You see the county I grew up in has no traffic lights. I first learned to drive in a vintage Volkswagon Beetle in the middle of a field. I was twelve. My parents let me drive the Volkswagon and farm vehicles on the gravel roads around the farm, over to Grandma's farm and occasionally into town.
(I believe at this time North Dakota State law allowed unlicensed farm children to drive their parent's farm vehicles provided they were within one hundred miles from the farm. When equipment breaks down somebody's got to make a parts run to the nearest implement dealership, you know?)

The summer after the eighth grade, when I was 14, I took driver's education at school. This involved watching videos, coloring the book of ND rules and regulations with highlighters when we were supposed to be paying attention and a trip with other students through the big cities of Harvey, Velva and finally Minot. I got my learner's permit by taking the computer touch screen test at the DMV in Minot. Three months later, as I was starting the ninth grade I took my driver's license test...and just barely passed. I mean, I SAW the little old lady in the cross walk. And I stopped for her. But the person administering the test had already told me to turn left...BEFORE I saw the elderly woman. Yeah...I stopped in the middle of the intersection. The elderly woman really didn't seem fazed.
When it came time to parallel park, the administrator simply asked me to back next to the curb behind a single car. I don't know if it was too difficult for her to find two cars to parallel park between in Harvey, North Dakota or if she feared the damage I might inflict on the second car. I simply remember breathing a sigh of relief when it was all over.

I still can't parallel park to save my life.