Things Are Not As They Seem

"You Rules Do Not Apply Here."

That's the advertising mantra for a favorite video game, Obsidian.
They describe my feelings this morning as I reflect over the past 12
hours. 

My rules do not apply here.

Here's what happened (or, rather, not):

We call ahead to a Wal-Mart in Port Richey, FL, to make sure we can
park our motor home overnight in the parking lot. We spend many nights
parked in Wal-Mart lots while we are on the road. It's a common
practice called boondocking.

"No problem," a service representative chirps. "Just park
near the garden shop end of the store."

Then, the warning flags begin cluttering the field.

1. We pull into the lot and immediately see there is no space at the
garden shop. The lot's not crowded; it's too small
for a motor home. So we wind our way to the outside end of the lot,
where we find room. But, wait, there's more.

2. There's a scary looking, very old motor home already here. Often,
this means a poor exhaust  system will  smoke us out.

3. We park next to a McDonald's 24-hour drive through. Fill in the
blanks.

4. We get out to walk the dogs and find the police swarming around
three nearby cars. And we don't know why. We lock our doors AND windows.

5. We get ready to climb into bed on this 30-degree night, and my
husband turns the heat OFF.

That's my Top 5 list for a Bad Night.

OK. Here it is morning.

And I got a great night's sleep. Peaceful, uneventful, comfortable. Bliss.

Therefore, my rules do not apply here.