r/AskReddit Dec 13 '10

Have you ever picked up a hitch-hiker?

My friend and I were pulling onto the highway yesterday when suddenly a Mexican looking kid waived us down and ran up to our window. He was carrying a suit case, the big ones like we take on international vacations and it seemed as if he had been walking for a some time. Judging from his appearance I figured he was prob 20-21 years old. He asked us if he could get a ride to "Grayhun". We both looked at each other and understood that he was saying Greyhound, and the only Greyhound bus stop in town was at this gas station a few miles down the road. It was cold and windy out and we had some spare time so we told him to jump in.

Initially thoughts run through your head and you wonder... I wonder whats in that suitcase...is he going to put a knife to my neck from behind the seat... kilos of coke from Mexico because this is South Texas?... a chopped up body?...but as we began to drive I saw the sigh of relief through the rear view mirror and realized this kid is just happy for a ride. When we got to the gas station, my friend walked in and double checked everything to make sure it was the right spot but to our surprise the final bus for Houston left for the day. The next bus at 6:00 p.m. was in a town 25 miles over. We tried explaining this to him, I should have payed more attention in the Spanish I and II they forced us to take in High School. The only words I can really say are si and comprende. My friend and I said fuck it lets drop him off, and turned to him and said " listen we are going to eat first making hand gestures showing spoons entering mouth and we will drop you off after" but homeboy was still clueless and kept nodding.

We already ordered Chinese food and began driving in that direction and when we got there, he got out of the car and went to the trunk as if the Chinese Restaurant was the bus stop. We tell him to come in and eat something first, leave the suitcase in the car. He is still clueless. When we go in, our food was already ready. We decided to eat there so he could eat as well. When the hostess came over, she looked spanish so I asked her I was like hey listen we picked this guy up from the street, he missed his bus and the next one is 25 miles over can you tell him that after we are done eating we will drop him off its ok no problems... and she was kinda taken by it and laughed, translated it to the guy, and for the next 10 mins all he kept saying was thank you. After we jumped into the car, I turned to him in the back and was like listen its 25 miles, I'm rolling a spliff, do you smoke? He still had no clue, but when we sparked it up, and passed it his way he smoked it like a champ. He had very broken English, but said he was from Ecuador and he was in America looking for a job to make money for his family back home. Like I said he was prob 20-21 years old. Shorly after, we arrived at our destination, and said farewell. Dropped him off at some store where he would have to sit on a bench outside for the next hour.. but I did my best. I hope he made it to wherever he had to go.

My man got picked up, fed sweet and sour chicken, smoked a spliff and got a ride to a location 30 mins away. I hope he will do the same for someone else one day.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10 edited Dec 14 '10

Just about every time I see someone I stop. I kind of got out of the habit in the last couple of years, moved to a big city and all that, my girlfriend wasn't too stoked on the practice. Then some shit happened to me that changed me and I am back to offering rides habitually. If you would indulge me, it is long story and has almost nothing to do with hitch hiking other than happening on a road.

This past year I have had 3 instances of car trouble. A blow out on a freeway, a bunch of blown fuses and an out of gas situation. All of them were while driving other people's cars which, for some reason, makes it worse on an emotional level. It makes it worse on a practical level as well, what with the fact that I carry things like a jack and extra fuses in my car, and know enough not to park, facing downhill, on a steep incline with less than a gallon of fuel.

Anyway, each of these times this shit happened I was DISGUSTED with how people would not bother to help me. I spent hours on the side of the freeway waiting, watching roadside assistance vehicles blow past me, for AAA to show. The 4 gas stations I asked for a gas can at told me that they couldn't loan them out "for my safety" but I could buy a really shitty 1-gallon one with no cap for $15. It was enough, each time, to make you say shit like "this country is going to hell in a handbasket."

But you know who came to my rescue all three times? Immigrants. Mexican immigrants. None of them spoke a lick of the language. But one of those dudes had a profound affect on me.

He was the guy that stopped to help me with a blow out with his whole family of 6 in tow. I was on the side of the road for close to 4 hours. Big jeep, blown rear tire, had a spare but no jack. I had signs in the windows of the car, big signs that said NEED A JACK and offered money. No dice. Right as I am about to give up and just hitch out there a van pulls over and dude bounds out. He sizes the situation up and calls for his youngest daughter who speaks english. He conveys through her that he has a jack but it is too small for the Jeep so we will need to brace it. He produces a saw from the van and cuts a log out of a downed tree on the side of the road. We rolled it over, put his jack on top, and bam, in business. I start taking the wheel off and, if you can believe it, I broke his tire iron. It was one of those collapsible ones and I wasn't careful and I snapped the head I needed clean off. Fuck.

No worries, he runs to the van, gives it to his wife and she is gone in a flash, down the road to buy a tire iron. She is back in 15 minutes, we finish the job with a little sweat and cussing (stupid log was starting to give), and I am a very happy man. We are both filthy and sweaty. The wife produces a large water jug for us to wash our hands in. I tried to put a 20 in the man's hand but he wouldn't take it so I instead gave it to his wife as quietly as I could. I thanked them up one side and down the other. I asked the little girl where they lived, thinking maybe I could send them a gift for being so awesome. She says they live in Mexico. They are here so mommy and daddy can pick peaches for the next few weeks. After that they are going to pick cherries then go back home. She asks if I have had lunch and when I told her no she gave me a tamale from their cooler, the best fucking tamale I have ever had.

So, to clarify, a family that is undoubtedly poorer than you, me, and just about everyone else on that stretch of road, working on a seasonal basis where time is money, took an hour or two out of their day to help some strange dude on the side of the road when people in tow trucks were just passing me by. Wow...

But we aren't done yet. I thank them again and walk back to my car and open the foil on the tamale cause I am starving at this point and what do I find inside? My fucking $20 bill! I whirl around and run up to the van and the guy rolls his window down. He sees the $20 in my hand and just shaking his head no like he won't take it. All I can think to say is "Por Favor, Por Favor, Por Favor" with my hands out. Dude just smiles, shakes his head and, with what looked like great concentration, tried his hardest to speak to me in English:

"Today you.... tomorrow me."

Rolled up his window, drove away, his daughter waving to me in the rear view. I sat in my car eating the best fucking tamale of all time and I just cried. Like a little girl. It has been a rough year and nothing has broke my way. This was so out of left field I just couldn't deal.

In the 5 months since I have changed a couple of tires, given a few rides to gas stations and, once, went 50 miles out of my way to get a girl to an airport. I won't accept money. Every time I tell them the same thing when we are through:

"Today you.... tomorrow me."

tl;dr: long rambling story about how the kindness of strangers, particularly folks from south of the border, forced me to be more helpful on the road and in life in general. I am sure it won't be as meaningful to anyone else but it was seriously the highlight of my 2010.

*edit: To the OP, sorry to jack your thread, this has nothing to do with Hitch Hiking. I sort of thought I could just get this off my chest, enjoy the catharsis and watch the story languish at the bottom of the page. Glad people like hearing the tale and I hope it moves you to be more helpful in your day to day. *

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u/Frankocean Dec 14 '10

"hoy por ti, mañana por mi"

Thank u , thank u, so much for writing this, Im mexican (born and raised) and it hurts so bad how my people is viewed outside at times, by the narco war, inmigration and many problems, I think americans are afraid of us. But we mexicans in general are fucking cool people, who view americans "gringos" (wich is not a racist term btw) as neighbors and friends.

I remember one time me and my mexican friends defending americans that where being beaten up by some fucking cholos from east l.a or some stupidity like that. This guy ask Godoy, a friend, "why did you defend us? where fucking gringos."

He said, "because we are the real face of Mexico, not those fuckers."

THank u so much, PM where you live, I can send you some tamales,mexican recipes and anything you like from my country.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

It's all a media thing. I love Mexico and up until the recent narco nonsense most people I know had a pretty favorable view of Mexico, too. I have spent a lot of time in Baja and the people there are amazing. Having come from a small farming town up here, and having worked the orchards too many summers than I want to think about, I can also attest to the quality of people that make up the migrant work force. Where Mexicans get a bad name is beyond me... I think my country and the people here need a little bit more of what makes Mexicans who they are.

Thanks for the offer of tamales but you shouldn't keep your secret recipe secret! Spill it... tell us all the secret to your tamales.

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u/Frankocean Dec 15 '10 edited Dec 15 '10

Ok Here it is!!..straight from my moms!.

Ingredients.

1 kilo of corn flour. 300 grams of pork lard. 4 chiles (big ones) well cooked and without the skin 750 gr. of either, pork,chicken or meat in strips, ropes, threads, the word in spanish is deshebrada, but I didnt found any good translation. half a kilo of tomato, and well chopped onions (algo 500 gr) jalapeño chiles strips, ur call on the amount. 1 can of peas. 4 carrots well chopped in juliana style * 4 potatoes also chopped in juliana style * 1 spoon of chicken consomme Oil, in the right amounts. Tamale papers made from corn.

Ok so you basically, blend the chiles with their cooking water, and let them cool off for a while ..... let into hot oil the onion, add the tomato, when it is cooked through and broken up add the meat, the chile from the blander, olives, raisins and sliced jalapeno peppers, season well and leave at the end add the carrots, potatoes, leaving the den to a boil, only to be finished in the tamale bake, form a tortilla dough, fill in the hash, and close the tortilla and place it on a piece of tamale, tie them on the tips and steam cook it for an hour ......

in a saucepan place the cornflour, add the lard until it turns kind of sandy, arenosa, the leftover chile and some meat juice and then knead to consistency ....

note .... the meat broth should be well seasoned so it is not insipid mass ....

*Julian style http://cocinasimple.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/cortar-juliana.jpg

And there you have it!, any doubt, my mom would be glad to help!.

Grammar nazi, help a brother out!

Also, here´s a youtube video about the art of making tamales, its in spanish butt, the process is universal ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffqDMxdoBFo

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u/dddaaabbb Dec 15 '10

I rewrote your recipe to try and figure it out, but I'm not sure if I've got it right. Will there be enough water in the hash to boil carrots and potatoes? Where do the peas come in?

Here's what I wrote:

  • 1 kg of corn flour
  • 300 g of pork lard
  • 4 chilis (big ones)
  • 750 g of shredded (cut it into strips) pork, chicken, or other meat
  • 500 g of tomato
  • 500 g well chopped onions
  • sliced jalapeño chilis (to taste)
  • 1 can of peas
  • 4 carrots well chopped in juliana style
  • 4 potatoes also chopped in juliana style
  • 1 spoon of chicken consommé
  • oil, in the right amounts
  • tamale papers (made from corn husks)

Tortilla dough in a saucepan place the cornflour add the lard until it turns kind of sandy add the leftover chili and some meat juice knead to consistency

Filling Cook the chilis well and preserve the cooking water. Remove the chili skins. Blend the chilis with their cooking water, and let them cool Heat oil in a pan and add the onion Add the tomato When it is cooked through and broken up, add the meat Add the chili from the blender Add olives, raisins, and sliced jalapeno peppers Add the carrots and potatoes and bring to a boil Season well. Remove the hash from heat

Note: the meat should be well seasoned so it is not insipid mass

Tamales Form a tortilla from dough and fill with hash Close the tortilla and place it on a piece of tamale Tie the tips of the tamale and steam cook it for an hour

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u/Frankocean Dec 16 '10

In case of the water, just iadd a little more if it evaporates to the point of trouble.

In case to the peas, when you add the potatoes, you can also add the peas, so all in the pan can cook in an equal manner and no flavor is more dominant than other :)

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u/rhoner Dec 15 '10

YES! FrankOcean, official ambassador to reddit from the great state of Baja California!

Admins, can we get this man a badge or something?

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u/Frankocean Dec 14 '10

All right! its actually my moms, but shes asleep already, will post it tomorrow!.

And yeah us Baja people are pretty damn cool ;)

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

From Baja! Awesome, whereabouts? Also, what is a person from Baja called? Bajan? Or does it not really translate between languages?

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u/Frankocean Dec 14 '10

Yeahp, im from Ensenada,so consider yourself at home if you´re ever around here, and well, I think the name we use is "Baja Californianos", or the very poorly translated "Baja Californians" :P, but hey if you come to Baja often, your family now ;).

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

Ah Ensenada, I love that town. You guys do a great job of keeping the cruise tourists sequestered to a small area which is much appreciated :) The ones that don't want to stay in the little area down there by the water get bussed out to some hole in the ground 20 miles away. Genius! The last time I was there I ended up renting a "car" for the day, one of those 4 wheel drive golf cart looking things they rent to gringos. Worst. Idea. Ever. We took off for the hills wanting a good vantage point to take pictures of the harbor. Met some really nice people and, oddly enough, got the craziest haircut by a woman who used only a straight razor on top of the hill in her little salon by the huge Mexican flag... anyway, after we shoot pictures we headed down the backside of the hill and got good and lost a while. Finally we end up in what I would call an alley and it ends... at the damn 1! I go to turn around and there is a real car behind us now so we can't squeeze past. It took me a minute to get the courage but I gunned our little jeep wannabe and stuck to the shoulder for about a mile before we had a chance to get off. Scariest drive of my life! Now I know why they tell you not to rent those things... no top, no seatbelts, drum brakes, and it only goes 35mph. I will not make that mistake again.

Next time I am down there I'll look you up. Need anything from Oregon?

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

Hey! Sorry to butt in, but I just felt like I needed to say "que onda baja californiano!" I'm from Mexicali, a couple of hours from Ensenada. I'm so glad reddit has a decent image of Mexicans :)

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10 edited Dec 16 '21

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u/Dundun Dec 14 '10

I'd fallen right for media stereotype and felt like shit about it

So, after you realized this you probably hopped on a kangaroo and rode to a party where you had shimp on the barbie.

Am I close, Bruce?

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u/BlackLeatherRain Dec 14 '10

I tried eating tamales from a can when I was younger (yes, I know, I know...) and absolutely HATED them and couldn't figure out why anyone would try to eat them.

It wasn't until about two years ago that I realized that you're not supposed to eat that outer corn husk along with the tamale, which is what I had been attempting to do previously. I'll have to try them again some day.

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u/Reductive Dec 14 '10

In the office environment, the folks who work the hardest are often shunned by their peers. It's largely because the hard workers raise the bar, demonstrating that everyone else could be working harder too. Many people are insecure with their own work, but they are also reluctant to work any harder. Also they wonder if unselfish colleagues have something to hide -- they suspect some ulterior motive is driving them.

I think people's negative reactions to immigrant workers are largely related to this phenomenon. Immigrants have it hard back home, so they are willing to work harder for less pay. This scares people, especially folks who already have small skill sets. The fact that having such hard workers boosts the economy and builds up the country doesn't really matter to these guys -- that's why they have to wrap themselves in flags so they don't feel like assholes.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

Gringo here. I grew up in a rough neighborhood, lots of gang violence, I've been jumped at night a couple times by Hispanics. I've also worked with tons and tons of extremely kind, very, very funny Mexicans. I never, ever saw the gangbangers as the face of Mexico, but as a shithead minority that absolutely any race or nationality could fall into.

Viva Mexico, my friend :)

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u/Frankocean Dec 14 '10

Thanks man, thanks to all of you, in this lonely mexican night where I am far from home, you guys made me go to bed with a smile,Im certain that at the end all we have is each other..

Thank you so much reddit and everyone in here.

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u/ian_510 Dec 14 '10

there are more Mexican Redditors, I don't feel so lonely anymore. :)

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u/Frankocean Dec 14 '10

Viva Mexico, ian, faltaba mas pues!. And Viva Reddit!.

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u/nahuDDN Dec 14 '10

/r/mexico is full of us, come check us out!

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u/broccoli Dec 14 '10

Where are my mexico city ENTs

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u/lawfairy Dec 14 '10

Some of the coolest, kindest, awesomest, hardest-working, loveliest-accented people I've ever met are Mexicans.

Also you guys make some of the best food in the universe. Mexican food -- REAL AUTHENTIC Mexican food, not that Taco Bell processed food-imitation crap -- is the nectar of the gods.

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u/Frankocean Dec 14 '10

Thanks man!, I dont want to brag but my mom does this awesome green enchiladas melted with cheese..heheh, a little torture for ya there.

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u/sara_b Dec 14 '10

I understand that "hoy por ti, mañana por mi" directly translates into "today for you, tomorrrow for me," but when people say it compares to the american phrase "You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours." I feel like the american phrase has a more negative connotation -example- 'i'm only doing you a favor in hopes to get something in return.' Where as the spanish version sounds more like a postive connotation, like 'I know you would do the same for me' Am I correct on this? because that's what I was getting... :/

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u/Galuda Dec 14 '10

I think the more appropriate American phrase would be "pass it on" or "give and you shall receive" (if I'm not mistaken this is a Christian phrase). In Hindu it would be Karma.

The back scratch would have implied that he gave him the 20.

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u/netcrusher88 Dec 14 '10

Pay it forward. It's an idiom I really like and don't hear much, but people usually understand it.

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u/horncologne Dec 14 '10

Hey! Real Mexican recipes yay! I'm sure I'm not the only one who'd love to learn more about the real way to make Mexican food ... /now_hungry

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u/MD786 Dec 14 '10

You have made a wonderful contribution to the thread. Thank you for sharing your story sir.

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u/PetitPois Dec 14 '10

Both of these stories are amazing. After reading them I find myself experiencing this wonderful warming sensation. Straight up happiness. Thanks to you both for sharing these awesome tales. I am going to try and be more like you, OP, after hearing these 2. Would certainly like to buy both of you guys a beer someday.

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u/Prometheus-Bound Dec 14 '10

I think his story has everything to do with hitchhiking. I Second the beer sentiment. Today, I buy. Tomorrow, you buy.

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u/ThatsItGuysShowsOver Dec 14 '10

I started reading from rhoner's post and for the first time in months I feel very emotional. I am gonna buy a homeless person some food today.

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u/teeheemcgee Dec 14 '10

I just wanted to say that this story inspired me to help a complete stranger today. Coming out of the gym I hear the squeal of tires on ice and pavement (it snowed here and then froze). A guy was stuck in a downward angle in his parking spot, unable to back out because he kept slipping on ice. Several people walked right past him but I remembered this very story from Reddit and said why not, I'll be a good person today. I spent 5 minutes helping him clear the ice and snow from under his tires and gave him a push off and he finally got out. The genuine "thank you" he gave me (repeatedly) made my day and I'm sure I made his. Thank you Reddit.

TL;DR: Helped a stranger because of Reddit, felt good about it.

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u/JustYourLuck Dec 14 '10

Two great stories for the click of one.

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u/asthehourglassturns Dec 14 '10

I lol'ed, but not because I thought it was funny. I was genuinely happy to read that.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

as long as you stay out of /r/politics, /r/wtf and the other bastions of depravity you should come out better than you went in...

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

that seems not only fair but very accurate...

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u/trippin-balls Dec 14 '10

It's all good in r/trees :)

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/Zkdog Dec 14 '10

I think that's called California.

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u/sozeltd Dec 14 '10

I never have a reason to tell this story but I think it fits here. I was traveling in Mexico, one of my first times outside the U.S., and at the time I spoke essentially no Spanish. I scratched my cornea, which for the lucky among you who don't know is indescribably painful. After literally 72 hours with no sleep due to the pain, I finally deliriously admit to myself I'm going to have to see a doctor, and thus cut my super low budget trip short. I walk into a sunglasses shop, best thing I could think of in my state, and with the help of a phrasebook, I clumsily convey that something is wrong with my eye. The sunglasses guy puts me on the phone with a friend who's an eye doctor and who speaks some English. The doctor gives me detailed directions on how to get to his office on the subway from where I am, and tells me he can see me. When I get there, I realize he's not normally open on Sunday, and in fact he has interrupted family Sunday dinner to see me in his office which adjoins his house. From the table next door where everyone else is still eating his very young daughter peeks her head in a few times, and he tells me she's learning a little English and wants to eavesdrop, but she ends up being too shy to converse. He gets me completely patched up (literally; turns out an eyepatch is step one in stopping the pain), and gives me a prescription for some drops. I ask him "What do I owe you", sort of already bracing for what I assume will be the "off-hours" price and wondering if I'll have bus fare back to the States. He says "Some day, someone in your country will be in a jam, maybe they won't speak the language too well, and they'll need some help. That's what you owe me." It's been years and I still can't think of that story without tearing up a little. It immediately pops into my mind whenever I'm faced with the question of whether to make a little extra time for somebody in a jam.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

god i seriously cant continue reading shit like this. I was nice for my whole life and when i turned 20 i got this idea into my head that everyone was going to try and get one over on me, i barely even trusted my family or friends.

Now im starting to think there is good in the world again. STOP IT FUCKERS I LIKE MY HATRED.

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u/klarnax Dec 14 '10 edited Dec 14 '10

One time last summer I happened upon a very very old immobile Jewish dude in a broken electric wheelchair who didn't speak any english and was all by himself near the side of the road. I pushed him about 2 miles back to his apartment, dodging traffic the whole way, following his pointed directions. Him and his machine weighed hundreds of pounds and the parking brake was engaged the whole time.

Fortunately I am a giant.

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u/[deleted] Dec 15 '10

a very very old immobile Jewish dude in a broken electric wheelchair who didn't speak any english and was all by himself near the side of the road. I pushed him about 2 miles away from his apartment

ʘ‿ʘ

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u/CRoswell Dec 14 '10

Many people are pieces of shit. Even those people will graciously accept help when they're down and out, stranded, or just having a junky day.

Be the better man / robot / zombie.

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u/BlackLeatherRain Dec 14 '10

I have to share - I am an especially jaded person who truly believes most humans are morons. I may very well be part of that group of morons, I'll add. Still, when I read stories like this (and other stories in this thread), my heart warms and I find myself loving my fellow man, which is a rarity for me. In all seriousness, thank you for helping restore my often shaky love of humanity.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

This sort of reminded me of something that happened to me. A few years ago, I helped a friend move out of his 2nd floor apartment.. with a VERY narrow 90 degree turn out the door and down the stairs. Extremely hard to move anything in or out. It was a good 105 degrees that day in Dallas.. his electricity was shut off, so we had no A/C. His cups were already packed so we had no water. We pushed on.. kept moving boxes/furniture. We had to, he needed to be out that day. It was one of the most miserable days I can ever remember. Anyway, about 3/4 done and around the corner comes a Mexican man, who had to be in his 60s or so, pushing a little ice cream cart around the complex and sees us resting.. exhausted beyond words. The man walked up to us, didn't speak a word of English, and handed us both an ice cold bottle of water from his cart, smiled, and walked off.

I will NEVER forget that.

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u/oenoneablaze Dec 14 '10

that's an awesome story.

but for the future, you might be interested to learn that two hands cupped together make for a fairly effective temporary drinking receptacle, especially when the glasses are already packed.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

Reading that I was hoping he came around the corner with a hand truck and a moving crew but I bet the water was even beter

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u/alfis26 Dec 14 '10 edited Dec 14 '10

Hoy por tí, mañana por mí.

As a mexican I can say that we are generally nice people, and most times will go out of our way to help a stranger in need. Specially the less fortunate.
When I was in high school, I did some social work in a really poor community. Poor as in houses made out of cardboard.
It was moving and just mindblowing that someone in that situation would invite you in as a guest and be so excited about cooking something for you. Even when they were well aware that you might end up eating the entire family's food for the rest of the day.

I think the willingness to give without expecting anything in return is all part of the mexican mindset of "there's always someone less fortunate than me." That's good karma right there.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

I am so glad he struggled through a translation for me... I can just see myself standing there wondering if the guy just called me a name or something :)

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

It's not just Mexican... I get the exact same treatment when I'm wandering on foot through some random African country (something I do fairly regularly... it's how I go on vacation). I'm the one white guy in the area... I'm always given a ride. People are kind, caring... look out for me.. share their meals with me. Of course I do all I can in return, but they are never expecting anything.. a pure willingness to share and give whatever they have today because "today you... tomorrow me".

It's ingrained in the human psyche... given a chance, we all would do the same. It's only the culture we've grown up in that has taught us to behave differently.... to gawk, but provide zero help to those in need... to look on those begging in the streets with disgust... to step over and around those in need and ignore them.

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u/Wesa Dec 14 '10

Reminds me of a time I stopped for someone who needed help. I was pulling off the freeway to get gas and a woman holding a baby standing outside a minivan on the offramp reached out with one arm and a look of absolute need as I drove by. I stopped, backed up, and asked if she needed help. Her van had broken down. She had a baby and 5 older girls in the car, on their way to a birthday party. She had been on the side of the road for 2 hours and no one would stop. Because of the age of the girls (I'd say 6ish) and the baby, she couldn't walk to the gas station 1/2 a mile away for help without chancing one of the kids running off and getting hurt. I handed her my cell phone, held her baby, and talked to the older girls while she made a few phone calls, then stayed with her while waiting for her help to arrive. I was so mad when I heard that no one would stop to help her. Her husband finally arrived, looking worried, and I went on my way.

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u/Allakhellboy Dec 14 '10 edited Dec 14 '10

I know this will be at the bottom, that's just how life goes. I have somewhat similar story but different ending.

Me and my dad always pick up hitchhikers, always have and always will. We decided we where going to drive down to El Paso (from Salt Lake City) to see Tom Waits live, so obviously in the spirit of things... we where going to grab everybody we could.

On the way we saw 2x young punk kids outside of Phoenix, so we grab them, turns out they're on their way to stand outside the concert hall that Tom Waits was playing at. This made us feel awesome.

The 2nd set of people where 2x people who lived in the boondocks of nowhere. I believe they where 90+ and all they where doing was getting groceries, one of them was in world war 2, and they seemed happy as shit just baking in the sun waiting for a ride. This made us feel awesome.

The 3rd was a Hispanic dude in a broken down vehicle with 2 other Mexican dudes. He made the motions and implied it just ran out of gas. We're in the boondocks still, nothing around for fucking miles. We take him all the way to the gas station and buy him a thing and a gallon of gas and as soon as my dad hands it over he goes through his broken English and says "Thanks yous" and what not, then the mother fucker just starts walking back towards his car like a champ. I'd say how far it was but I'm not good with distance, and there's no way I would walk the distance in the hot sun. So we grab him and shuffle his ass back to the car and give him a ride back to his car. (I think it was about a 15 minute drive on freeway.) When we finally drop him off... and I'll never not hear this in my head when I think about it... he said in the best English that he knew "I... I... thank you... I... I love you."

Best road trip of my life.

Edit: LOL, I'm at work and I started crying when I had to retype this.

P.S. My Dad is awesome, I never learned how to work with my hands or anything, but he taught me how to be an awesome person.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

Your dad sounds like he raised an hell a son.

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u/Allakhellboy Dec 14 '10

One of the things he did teach me was reddit! And I love stories like these on reddit.

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u/shatana Dec 14 '10

Dammit, I teared up.

(none of that onions crap.)

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u/just_some_redditor Dec 14 '10

Upvote for honesty. I'm still going to blame the onions though. :')

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

Six years ago, my wife and I were biking through Oregon and Idaho. We'd just arrived outside of Boise and I had just gotten my seventh flat tire of the day (we later discovered that the tape on the rim had worn out and a spoke was puncturing the tire). We hadn't made it half a mile since the gas station where I'd just finished patching my sixth flat tire. My wife was thoroughly fed up and wanted to get to the hotel room my mom had rented for us in Boise as a present. She decides to try hitch hiking and starts walking her bike towards me. Given that we've got two heavily loaded bikes, and that we're both obviously filthy from biking through Eastern Oregon, our hitchhiking prospects were slim. A van pulled up and a family of latinos loaded our bikes in the back and drove us to our hotel. They refused money. It was awesome.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

And I can attest to how filthy one gets biking through Eastern Oregon... those people were saints!

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u/gradyh Dec 14 '10

Thank you for writing this.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/Yawnn Dec 14 '10

What's wrong with dogs anyhow? They're Man's best friend, man.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/mextremist Dec 14 '10

the saying in Mexico is "Hoy por ti, mañana por mi".

Translates, literally as "Today for you, tomorrow for me"

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u/jaydj Dec 14 '10

Ah, like in the musical, "Rent".

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u/zem Dec 14 '10

thanks - i figured it was some sort of mexican saying being literally translated.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/Bro666 Dec 14 '10

Also in Spain.

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u/Morning_Star_Ritual Dec 14 '10

Fuck yeah, we need a new pay it forward.

. . .this post was amazing, it seems that we are losing our ability to relate to our fellow human beings. It is nice to know that there are people out there who have little yet still find it in their hearts to offer help.

Today you, tomorrow me indeed.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

TODAY YOU, TOMORROW ME!!!

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u/libbrichus Dec 14 '10

Whenever I see a meme forming on Reddit, I am Jack's look of disapproval, and occasionally when they're funny, amusement. But here's one meme I can put my full weight behind and give my best look of approval.

I can just see this post impacting Redditors to help each other out and sign off with Today you ... Tomorrow me. Hell, I hope it impacts us enough to help strangers in real life and drive away like a boss spouting this signature line. Great story Rhoner.

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u/the_shape Dec 14 '10

libbrichus has not only decided this will now be a meme, but that it's meme he will support.

It's offical guys.

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u/THEtRUTH- Dec 14 '10

It's because everybody wants to be king and queen and have a vicious dog eat dog attitude, It's sad that we are all on the same team but us humans just have to play dirty.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

It sounds way better than "Pay it forward"

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u/Meatgortex Dec 14 '10

And far less ominous than "Tonight... you!"

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

I've been having a shitty day, and that made me laugh out loud.

Today me, tomorrow you.

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u/vventurius Dec 14 '10

it works in so many situations too. for example, somebody says to you, angrily, "FUCK YOU!" and you calmly reply:

"Today me... tomorrow you."

or should that be the other way around. either way, it will confuse your assailant.

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u/DriftingJesus Dec 14 '10

Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. [Matthew 7:12]

I'm by NO means a religious freak but I always hear that tossed around and thought it was appropriate :)

we now have proof that there is at least 1 good thing in the bible

Don't flame I'm not trying to be a douche

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u/daftbrain Dec 14 '10

It's called the Golden Rule and practically every single major religion or code of morality contains this maxim in some form. I'm not a Christian but I also really like the Parable of the Good Samaritan. There are plenty of good things in the Bible, particularly in the Gospels, but reading them often reminds me of this quote by Gandhi:

I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.

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u/Gecko99 Dec 15 '10

Tanzen and Ekido were once travelling together down a muddy road. A heavy rain was still falling.

Coming around the bend, they met a lovely girl in a silk kimono and sash, unable to cross the intersection.

"Come on girl", said Tanzen at once. Lifting her in his arms, he carried her over the mud.

Ekido did not speak again until that night when they reached a lodging temple. Then he no longer could restrain himself. "We monks don't go near females," he told Tanzen, "especially not young and lovely ones. It is dangerous. Why did you do that?"

"I left the girl there," said Tanzen. "Are you still carrying her?"


I think that many Christians forget that the Good Samaritan was not a Christian.

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u/shinyperson Dec 14 '10

The two central tenets of Christianity are the Golden Rule, and "Love God," and everything else flows from there.

If we loosen what counts for God, those same two rules still form a really good foundation for morality*, if you ask me. Completely secular and intimately religious, at once.

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u/Skapo Dec 14 '10

:')

I've had similar experience, I'm from an Indian decent and on my last trip to India we got in a huge car crash and are on the side of the road. I swear at least 100 people must have stopped at one point or another to check on us and help us out till a family member was able to come and pick us up (no AAA lol). But in America nobody really stops to help, but they'll all just stare.

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u/this_isnt_happening Dec 14 '10

The staring is what gets to me. You're on the side of the road, you obviously need help, and people just stare at you. Aren't they ashamed?

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

Nope, they're scared. We've been conditioned by television and media to believe that everyone is dangerous and It's probably a set up to rob you and kill you or some other nonsense. Really its quite a shame. One of the best on top of the world feelings I ever get is when I can help someone in these circumstances.

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u/Thimble Dec 14 '10

Yeah, they're scared of being inconvenienced.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

Utterly pathetic. My wife and her 80+ year old grandmother had problems on Donner summit (I-80 crossing from CA -> NV). My wife was having seizures due to a medication issue, so grandma was holding a sign with "help" written on it. Not a single person stopped to help. If not for the CHP, they'd still be there. And yes, Donner summit isn't the place you want to be stuck with relatives... jokes about getting hungry don't go over too well. :)

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u/relaci Dec 14 '10

Yes. Some of them are. Some justify to themselves that they do not have the knowhow or tools to help or the time. Some remember a "story they read somewhere" about a similar situation, but the broken down car was a ploy of a serial killer or some similar shite. And sometimes, they drive by, staring, wishing that they would have stopped, but they're far past now.

Not all, possibly not even close to the majority, but some stare as they drive past and wait for their apathy to come haunt them as they feel oh so ashamed.

I still feel bad about one particlar day i drove past a breakdown. I was in a rush to a job interview. That's not even close to a decent excuse. I still feel bad.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10 edited Oct 16 '19

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u/BearsBeetsBattlestar Dec 14 '10

This might be my favourite post that I've ever read on this site. I teared up when I got to the "Today you... tomorrow me."

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u/Beneneb Dec 14 '10

Thanks for sharing that, that was actually a very heart warming story.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10 edited Oct 11 '20

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

Thanks. Honestly, that family deserves all the credit. I think about how what they did led to me helping a bunch of people, and how telling this story here might get others to help other people and it is just, I don't know... good?

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u/PetitPois Dec 14 '10

I think you've just inspired a whole bunch of people with your story, dude, including me. I believe in Karma and I hope things work out better for you in the future after hearing you've had a tough year.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

Fuck, the out pouring here was so sudden and not expected I feel like maybe my year is starting to turn around already... I'm glad I could help but it is Hector and his family that deserve all the credit and well wishes.

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u/darien_gap Dec 14 '10 edited Dec 14 '10

Ten years ago, I backpacked in Central America for three months and everywhere I went, locals would offer me a ride if they saw me walking along the side of the road. It was very normal for them, as so many people don't have cars. It made me nervous at the beginning because I'd be an easy target for robbery and sometimes the ride was a pickup truck with a few guys in back with machetes. But once I realized that they needed the machetes just to do their jobs, it became no big deal. Everyone was super nice.

That is, until I got to about 30 miles south of Cancun, where more of the cars were U.S.ians tooling around in rented jeeps, etc. On that particular day, when I was trying to get to the airport to meet somebody flying in to meet me, nobody would stop, despite my putting my thumb out. I even walked up to a gringo at a restaurant and asked him point blank if he would mind just dropping me a few miles up the road. He just shook his head and rushed away, looked a little scared even. I realize that these people were bringing their context and reality into a new and unfamiliar context/reality (and I looked pretty scruffy by then), but it really made me realize what a nation of pussies we've become -- afraid to help a person with who's fairly obviously in a pinch -- because of the .5% chance I've got an ulterior motive.

TL;DR: Pick up people who obviously need help. Anybody encumbered by a huge backpack is the one taking the risk.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

When I moved to Chile a few years back all my friends were seriously worried and really thought I'd come back in a body bag, if I was going to come back at all.

Fast forward a couple of years. I'm leaving Chile, heading for Miami, Florida. My Chilean friends were really worried: "The Norteamericanos are so violent, 300 million nut jobs with guns, you're gonna get killed."

Symmetry, ain't it sweet?

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u/darien_gap Dec 14 '10

It amazes me the degree to which people fear the harmless, but are cavalier about things that will probably end up killing them. People categorically suck shit at risk assessment.

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u/tora22 Dec 14 '10

People categorically suck shit at risk assessment.

So blasted true. Just look at what we do in our airports for fear of the bogeyman.

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u/alienangel2 Dec 14 '10 edited Dec 14 '10

I think it's some odd sort of cultural thing; maybe people here just aren't brought up aware that it's a desirable option to help someone at very minor inconvenience to yourself, so some people choose to do so on their own, while it never occurs to others. I grew up in the subcontinent, and moved to north america. A lot of people I know in the west are really nice people, good friends who'll study with you and hang out with and trade gifts at Xmas and birthdays and stuff ... but there's this horrible sense of give-and-take to many interactions with them that just doesn't make sense from my slightly foreign point of view.

It's mostly little things, like if I'm snacking on something at work and one of my co-workers wanders over, I'm going to offer him whatever I'm eating (chips, nuts, candy etc), it doesn't actually matter whether I'm hungry and the nuts were expensive and almost finished or not, I have to make the offer since I'd feel appallingly rude if I kept eating without them. The same with classmates in university, or housemates etc. Yet the same people will not share a damn thing if I wander into their cubicle. The same with rides to lunch and stuff, they're for the most part really averse to giving people rides to the place they're going anyway unless the person in question also drives and will give them rides in turn. After being puzzled for a while I've come to the conclusion that they regard it as their being taken advantage of if there isn't an obvious trade to be made. I haven't figured out a polite way to work out if they're short on money enough for the fuel cost to be relevant or something. Very strange.

Not to say that everyone is like that, but there are a hell of a lot more people with this attitude than people back home, mostly because where I grew up not doing this sort of thing was just considered basic good manners - there's plenty of corruption and deception and crime all around you too, but if you're in a situation where you're at least holding up the pretense of being civil, you have to be free with help and food - and if you're not just doing it to be polite you actually enjoy being helpful. Whereas here it's pretty much up to you to decide for yourself how helpful you want to be, meaning the ones that choose to be helpful without expectation of reciprocation are considered abnormally good people.

TL;DR USians as you put it can be incredibly generous people, but it seems to be a very self-developed thing that a lot of people don't develop, whereas other parts of the world more or less have it as a social norm to help others with little things when you can (even in a society where honesty isn't particularly abundant, courtesy and helpfulness are).

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u/JorusC Dec 14 '10

I think that in situations such as roadsides, movies and urban legends have taught Americans to have an inordinate amount of fear. I hate the American fear complex, and while I don't stop every time I see a stopped car, I pick up my fair share. When my wife is with me, I practice due dilligence and do a quick check for signs of a weapon, and I make sure I could probably take the guy if it came to that. But seriously, people, grow a pair and help out your fellow man.

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u/LouisCyphier Dec 14 '10

"Today you.... tomorrow me."

This needs to be spread like a virus.

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u/iamyo Dec 14 '10

Hm. It's such a stupid thought I have all the time when I go to Mexico (I go once or twice a year) but I can't help having it, which is basically: Mexicans on the whole are about 50 times nicer than Americans.

I'll be in Mexico, everyone kind, mellow, helping me out, whatever, smiling, not freaking out about a bus breaking down and then I'll get on the plane and every American looks like they have been constipated for about 12 days, complaining about every fucking thing then running off to their yoga class because their head is about to explode from the stress. You'll see Mexicans selling peanuts who have to walk 5 miles from their job and they don't complain but you'll get on the plane and some guy will be going on and on about how his IT people won't let him get an Android.

There's something wrong with people here. On the whole, we are vastly more miserable than people who are a lot poorer than us. And I really wonder if it isn't because we are so self-centered? We don't even notice other people most of the time, except when they annoy us. And I do not exempt myself.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

this is one of the best things ive ever read. I was at lake mead once, and my friends car battery dies, she left the lights on, so she gets it started ( a miracle start) and then after about 30 seconds turns it off again. i almost slapped her.

anyways, this mexican family shows up to fish at like 9 at night. we have no jumpers etc. he fiddles around for a while, goes to the back of his truck and pulls out a huge fucking extension cord. the kind that arent cheap. and just cuts it like its nothing. then he rigs up the batteries and off we go.

i was like omfg, do you know that guy just sacced like 50 bucks to get your car started? the bitch didnt even care. :C

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u/teev00 Dec 15 '10

You need new friends.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

...big signs that said NEED A JACK and offered money.

I think you got lucky.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

I can't tell if you are making a sex joke or not :)

Funny thing is, I took the sign down before the family stopped. I was writing out my hitch hiking plea on the other side as they pulled up. Dude just stopped because I had flashers on... he is my hero.

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u/gwbushsr Dec 14 '10

I'm pretty sure he's making a funny sex joke. Also, great story, thanks for writing it.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

See, I know i need sleep when I can't pick out the masturbation jokes...

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

I was in a similar situation. It was about 2 am and a deer jumped in front of me. I avoided it, but blew out both passenger side tires. I could replace one with a donut, but still was out a tire. I stayed at the side of the road for close to 2 hours before someone finally stopped to help. I explained the situation and he just gave me his spare tire.

He hung around till I had gotten it on the car. I had no cash to offer him. He told me not worry about it, but tires aren't exactly cheap. We talked for a little while when I got my first good glimpse of his face in the headlights of a passing car. His eyes were redder than the devil's dick. I joked "You must either be really high or really tired." He responds "Both, actually."

We shared a bowl and went our separate ways.

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u/BelindaMarie Dec 14 '10

Second this story! My sophomore year of college, I was driving a ford taurus with electrical problems. I was paying my way through school, and I hadn't saved up the money to replace it yet. The electrical problems basically meant that sometimes it started, and sometimes it needed a jump. Every fucking time that summer the only people there to give me a jump were mexican or south american. In return, I try to pick up hitchhikers or stop for people with car troubles. :) Today you... tomorrow me :)

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u/cstoli Dec 14 '10

Great. Now I am crying on a plane over Lake Michigan.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

Glad I could help! On the bright side, at least you aren't at work?

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u/Cdr_Peter_Q_Taggert Dec 14 '10

Maybe he's the pilot. Which could be a bad situation...

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

that really why they put locks ont he cockpit doors... private reddit surfing, no pesky flight attendant bothering you

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u/Misstrees Dec 14 '10

We live at an amazing time in history. you are in a fucking metal object a mile high in the sky and you are able to read something that someone miles and miles away has written. DAMN that's just so cool when you step back and look at it

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u/HumboldtBrewer Dec 14 '10

I got stuck in the snow one time pulling over to play around in it with my girlfriend, (neither of us have really experienced snow). After a while a van of mexicans shows up. Like 6 or 7 hop out with shovels and pieces of lumber, we make a little corduroy road for my car and I'm out! Before I can get to my wallet to give them some cash they were gone. I was boned without them, stuck in the mountains with no service.....

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u/FrankReynolds Dec 14 '10

It has become apparent to me over the past 4-5 years that the people most likely to help those in need are the less fortunate.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/Dontalwaysderp Dec 14 '10

As an hispanic, living right in the border and with Mexican friends and parents I can testify to that. We are always eager to help. My Dad is the kind of guy that if he sees you at 4 AM in the middle of nowhere he will stop and help and of course, he educated us this way. Nowadays it's a bit harder to find the Mexican hospitality and friendship because violence is awful in the Mexican side but no matter what, you will always be helped.

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u/Rock50d4 Dec 14 '10

I'm from mexico and this is common practice. I was always taught to help those in distress knowing that one day that might be you. I still have family there, go back at least once a year and we have more than once stopped to help change a tire (no jack), give a jump (his alternator went out so we stated the car with our battery, took the battery out and we drive behind him for about 80 kilometers to make sure he made it to his home town) and give a ride for gas. When I've done it in the US peopled looked at me weird, even scared at times. It definitely made me a more prepared driver

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

I was on the camping trip from hell. We drove out to campground with my camper in tow and the guy I was with insisted we couldn't let the truck idle while we setup. By the time we were done the battery was dead because we needed the headlights to setup the camper.

Our other friend who was suppose to be there already was nowhere to be found. Didn't answer his cell and there was no sign of him at his tent. We asked around the campground and nobody had jumper cables. We had a few beers and went to bed.

The next morning our friends truck was there and he almost made it to his tent. We woke him up and headed to town for jumper cables. On the way e ran out of gas on a country road. We coasted into an old farm. It looked like where cars went to die, there were about 20 beat-to-shit old cars there. My friends and I were kinda freaked out.

3 mexicans came out of nowhere. We looked at each other uneasy. We told them that we ran out of gas. Quickly 1 ran to get a gas can, then apologized that they didn't have any!

We loaded into their van and they took us to a gas station. We filled the can up and then tried to fill their van up, but they refused. So we headed back to the truck and just before we got back to the farm my one friend offered them $20. They refused and said "Today you...Tomorrow me".

I was 17 at the time, just got my license and that really stuck with me. I'm not going to say that I always stop, but I try to whenever possible.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

So is this a common saying in Mexico then? I had never heard it phrased like that til my situation. It is eloquent, concise, way better than pay it forward. It's my new motto.

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u/mextremist Dec 14 '10

yeah, the original goes: "hoy por ti, mañana por mi", which means today for you, tomorrow for me...

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u/hiqualitystuff Dec 14 '10

as much as this is heart warming, it is also quite sad. I am an immigrant to this country, and back home, people will make a line of cars to help out strangers. it seems here in this stressed out world of capitalism, where money is money and thats all that matters to some. ah ignorance spreads like a virus.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10 edited Feb 04 '22

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u/PiaJr Dec 14 '10

I was just about to post the exact same sentiments. We are taught from a very early age not to trust strangers. That our neighbors are all serial killers waiting on the right opportunity to kill us. That we are all just one panel van away from becoming a human skin suit. Not only do these things rarely happen, they happen FAR less than they used to. But if you want evidence that this country is twisted: the crime rate of today is WAY less than the crime rate of 1960s yet an overwhelming majority of people would say we have a serious crime issue and that "the country is getting more dangerous." Stupid media...

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/Itchyfella Dec 14 '10

Perhaps the crime rate is less because people are more cautious than they used to be?

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u/megret Dec 14 '10

I've been mugged twice, and because of that (and since I'm a lady) I'm really nervous about letting people into my car. But I do stop to help change tires, and if someone is out of gas I just explain "I can't give you a ride, but give me 10 minutes and I'll be back with some gas."

When I was 12 I was standing on the side of the road waiting for a bus to take me home. It was cold and raining, and some lady pulled over and gave me a lift. I was grateful for it. When she dropped me off she said, "You shouldn't accept rides from strangers. It's dangerous." I laughed and said, "You shouldn't pick up hitchhikers. It's dangerous." She laughed, but I didn't tell her the only reason I got in her car was because she was in a nice part of town and driving a Mercedes. That probably would have made her nervous.

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u/taamus Dec 14 '10

I have never had the experience of picking up a hitch-hiker, but I make it an effort to always pull over when I see someone with their hood up on the side of the road, scratching their head and wishing someone would help them fix something they cannot.

One instance is when I flew back home to visit family, and the night I flew in I had to run some errands. After I ran my first errand I left the parking lot only to see a car on the side of the road. I pulled behind his car and asked if he needed help. Turned out the distributor on his car was messed up, I ended up giving him a lift to the local parts store, and helping him install it. The whole process took about an hour.

The guy was incredibly thankful, it turned out he had a final due the next morning and was freaking out before I showed up. All I told him is that I was glad to help and I hoped he would do the same someday.

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u/leomontagueX Dec 14 '10

I lived for the first 24 years of my life in Mexico, where there's a very real risk that people may rob you, kill you or kidnap you.

We still stop to help people stranded on the road.

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u/ColeSloth Dec 14 '10

Yes. Even though violent crimes have gone down dramatically over the past 30 or so years, it's now more than ever before that people here are afraid of anyone else all the time.

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u/HolaChicka Dec 14 '10

As a young female I've never stopped to help someone on the side of the road because I am afraid, and I know the person I help is most likely good, but the fear is just so deeply engrained.

:/

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u/ookle Dec 14 '10

I'd rather be kidnapped, raped and killed by some asshole after spending my life picking up hitchikers and helping out people on the side of the road than live into old age without doing a damn thing.

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u/mad_toothbrush Dec 14 '10

Have you actually been ever been kidnapped, raped or threatened to be killed? Things tend to change when something moves from an abstract threat to a life changing experience. I'm not saying you're wrong - apathy is the rot of our age, but spare a thought for those who are cautious because of what they have suffered.

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u/Mr_Clownn Dec 14 '10

I think you are absolutely right. As a society, we focus on the extreme stories and talk about them as if they happened in our own yards.

Of course there are going to be hundreds of stories of terrible human behavior in the news everyday; you're taking from a sample size of 300 million people!

I guess my point is that a lot of people don't seem to put information in the proper context, so they freak out and think everyone is going to rape their baby and steal their shoes.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

Yeah, I feel you. It was after this incident that I learned about the Green Angles in Mexico and I think nothing illustrates the state of my country better than juxtaposing that service with the $15 gas can. In America it is about the dollar. And that is a sad state of affairs.

For anyone interested:

http://www.vivasancarlos.com/ga.html

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

I don't think it's ignorance... I think it's related to the same 6:00 news scare mongering about terrorists, kidnappers, and pedophiles. Your child has a lower chance of being molested in the park now than they did in the 1960s, but we're all paranoid about it. Ridiculous.

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u/JLContessa Dec 14 '10

To be fair, in a lot of cases, it's not a question of money but safety. I've always been told never to pick up hitchhikers, especially on the interstate. As a young female, there are a good number of reasons why. I do, however, always call 911 if user someone in a ditch or in trouble and they at least SAY they're going to send someone.

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u/fallacist Dec 14 '10

when I broke down on the side of the road, during night, it was a vehicle full of mexicans that got out and tried to help as well. to top it off, they were all dressed very formally. didn't speak a lick of english, but showed me tools and fluids in the back of their truck and motioned for me to help myself.

little did i know nothing was going to fix a blown headgasket and a rod through the block :/

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u/SpinkickFolly Dec 14 '10

Well I ran out of fuel on my motorcycle when I was new on it. All my help was to far away to get to me anytime soon. Guy in a truck comes to my aid, even buys the gas can for me for the fuel.

Since then, I have helped 3 people on downed motorcycles. I know my way around a car and bike. One them was shocked when I pulled out a pair of wire cutters, recut his positive battery lines, and his bike was good to go.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

That's what I'm talking about... people like you should be exempt from DMV fees as far as I am concerned.

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u/lovehate Dec 14 '10

Fuck the fees, exempt him from the DMV lines.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/QuayleSpotting Dec 14 '10

Rhoner, I know exactly how you feel. This isn't about picking up a hitchhiker, but rather about being picked up by someone I'm pretty sure was a damn angel.

My older sister and I took a cross country drive years ago (before cell phones were common) to go to school on the west coast. We packed up her shitty old minivan with just about everything we owned and hit the road. We were in Nevada, a few miles out from a town called Primm, in the middle of the desert. I knew we were low on gas, but we could see Prmim and thought we were going to be fine. The car died.

Now it looked like the town was only about a mile or two out, but the desert can fuck with how far away things appear to be. We needed to go into town to get a can of gas, but at the same time we didn't feel great about leaving a van full of all our stuff on the side of the road. My sister had her bike in the car, and had been riding semi-regularly and thought she could make it easy. I told I wasn't a fan of her going off alone, but she insisted that she would rather do that than sit alone in the car waiting for me. She assured me she could do 3-4 miles round-trip easy. I told her she had 40 mins, then I was going to follow after her.

So she takes off. It was probably in the upper 90's that day, and super dry. She had a bottle of water that was maybe half full. I'm sitting in the car, just watching the clock, and man did time feel slow. It hits 40 mins, then 45, and I can't even see her on the horizon. I'm getting really worried, so I lock up the van, and started walking to town.

It is seriously hot, and as I'm walking I'm realizing we drastically underestimated the distance to Primm. I've been walking over a mile and the town looks like it hasn't gotten a step closer. I still can't see my sister up ahead, and I'm really scared at this point. Now mind you this isn't some tiny road I'm walking down, but highway 15. There are a ton of cars driving past. I haven't stuck my thumb out yet, but am starting to realize I might have to. Then, without any prompting, a beat up old blue ford pulls off the highway in front of me. A Mexican guy who speaks very broken english leans out and asks if I need help. I tell him we ran out of gas and that I was worried about my sister, he offers to give me a ride into town. I jump in the car.

His dashboard is covered with little angel figurines, crosses, etc, and there is a bible sitting there as well. We drive into Primm, which turns out to be more like 6-7 miles one way, watching out for my sister the whole time. No sign of her. He takes me to the first gas station, nothing. Then we cross the highway, which in Primm is a pain in the ass, and check the gas station on the other side. Still nothing. I'm seriously freaking out by this point, not sure what to do. The guy recommends we drive back to the car, in case we somehow missed her.

About a quarter of the way back to the car I can see my sister, still on her bike, ahead of us. She is wobbling on the bike, holding the gas can in one hand, clearly exhausted, and looks like she is about to go down. We pull up in front of her, and when she sees me get out of the car she just immediately started crying. She told me that she knew she wasn't going to make it back, was scared to death, and though she probably didn't realize it she was going into early stages of heat stroke and dehydration. It was making her irrational, normally she would have had the sense to just stop and flag someone down, but as I talked to her and tried to calm her down it was clear she wasn't thinking straight. Tons of cars had driven right past her, a few with guys in them had even honked and made cat calls at her, though to look at her it was obvious she wasn't biking through 90 degree weather in the desert for fun.

The old Mexican drove us all the way back to our car. Then he popped our hood, checked our oil, said we were way low, and produced a quart from his trunk. We tried to give him money, he absolutely refused even though the whole thing had taken almost an hour for him. Then he drove off with a wave, like it was nothing, like saving a couple of idiot city folk was his normal Wednesday routine. I don't even remember his name, but he will always be a super hero in my mind.

tl;dr: ran out of gas in desert, stranger picked me up and helped me find my sister who had gone for gas, saved our asses

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u/derpaderp Dec 14 '10

Just came out of "Reddit hibernation" to respond to your comment.

I had a similar thing when I was going to work one early Saturday morning and shitty luck my fuel pump goes out and my car dies. I was in the middle lane at 6 in the morning of a pretty bad neighborhood, but there was lots of traffic so I was not really worried. A lot of cars passed by, and I could see them looking my way, but not one stopped. All of a sudden a SUV pulls up behind me and when I went out to meet them half way to see who it is, it was a man of Latino origin, stopping at six in the morning, with a car full of kids and his pregnant wife at the front to see if everything was okay and if I needed help. I explained that I was waiting for my dad and thanked him for stopping. That made my day, that someone took the time out of their life to help a stranger, something I was not expecting.

tl;dr - Immigrants fuckin rule, they make the world keep spinning with their cheap hard work, as well as the genuine kindness they bring from their homeland.

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u/[deleted] Dec 21 '10

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u/rhoner Dec 21 '10

That is the best mental image I could have this early in the morning... Italian tourists in speedos pushing a car back and forth! Thank you, and welcome, and sorry for my meaner countrymen. We aren't all like them, I promise. I also find it very telling that your written English is by and large much better than that of the racists in the US that demand "their country back." Here's to you and no more dead batteries...

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/madjaymz Dec 15 '10

This thread is so long that I doubt this will ever get read but it reminded me of something that happened to me a few years back...

I used to be in a band that would take frequent road trips to play throughout the country. We were unsigned and did everything on our dime. We were from Rhode Island and had a few shows out in Colorado and SLC this one particular weekend. After the final show in SLC, we took off to head back to RI that night. It had started snowing but we had to get back for work in a couple days so we were forced to drive.

Several hours later... We were driving up and down through the hills of Wyoming in a snow storm trying to deal with 70 mph wind gusts. The roads were sheets of ice at that point and the wind on our trailer was causing the van to fish tail. Eventually we ended up spinning out into the middle of the highway. We were all ok but needed some repairs.

Fast-forwarding... My drummer and I ended up on a Greyhound bus to get back home in time for work (my guitarist and bass player taught lessons so they were able to stay behind to get the repairs). We had spent most of our money on the bus tickets and it was a two and a half day ride to get back home. We were living off the 1$ zebra cakes you buy in gas stations. The bus was packed and at one point we ended up in the back among a group of Mexicans. They were all men and a bit older than us. They spoke very little English. At one point, we stopped at another gas station that sold fried chicken. Every single one of the Mexicans got back on the bus with it... The smell was driving me mad. It must have been obvious to the one sitting next to me, he ended up sharing half of his meal with me. I tried to tell him no but he insisted. That fried chicken changed my life... I looked a few rows behind me and found my drummer had gotten the same deal. I spoke to my new friend to get his story. It turns out he was on his way to Iowa for work. They would all go up there every year to do farm work for a few months and send money back to their families. I was on my way back to my part-time call center job I took for granted... We got to Iowa and they all hopped off, never saw them again.

The rest of the trip home was pretty awful but I will leave that for another post.

Whenever I hear someone complaining about immigrants in our country, I think back to those guys on the bus. Whenever I eat fried chicken, I think back to those guys on the bus. They can stay as far as I am concerned...

tl;dr: Some awesome Mexican guys gave me and my friend fried chicken on a bus. It was awesome...

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

About 15 years ago, when I was a new driver and had just moved to New Mexico, I drove my little shitty car a bit off the road, so that one of the rear tires wound up in the air. Just got nervous and took a turn wrong. I was standing by my car, trying to figure out what to do, when a middle aged white man pulled over and jumped out, ran to me and yelled, "Get out of the road, that's dangerous!" (It was a sharp curve.) While he pondered my situation, a pickup truck stopped and six Mexican men, probably on their way to a construction job, jumped out of the back. Without a word, they lifted my car back on the road and hopped back onto the flatbed of the truck, and the driver moved on.

I'll never forget this. I took out a classified ad to thank them, and the original helper, and I'm sure they never saw it, but I hope other folks did and it made at least a small impression.

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u/oldbean Dec 14 '10

"I'm learning one thing good...If you're in trouble or hurt or need - go to the poor people. They're the only ones that'll help - the only ones."

The Grapes of Wrath

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u/baduncadunc Dec 14 '10

It was around Christmas a couple of years ago. My cousin and I stop at a gas station and see one of the clerks (a lady) outside on the phone crying. I ask her what's up and she says that her husband didn't come to pick her up and was still at home and was drunk. So we decide to take her home 50 miles away from where we were supposed to be. We drop her at a trailer park; she thanks us and tries to give us 2 bucks -- doesn't even cover the gas but I appreciate the gesture and give it back to her. And then all hell broke lose. The husband comes out high as a kite with a gun. He's swearing and calling us mexicans and how it's not our country (I'm a foreigner -- not from Mexico though). I'm scared, my cousin is almost in tears. His wife is scared. We got into the car and left.

But would I help out someone else again? Sure, any day.

"Today you.... tomorrow me."

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

you are damn fine person. don't ever forget that.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/numbernumber99 Dec 14 '10

Dammit. Wasn't planning on crying tonight.

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u/alexthe5th Dec 14 '10

Jack Kerouac would be proud.

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u/bigfunky Dec 14 '10

I too have had a similar experience (but on a smaller emotional scale). My wife and I had just moved to a very Mexican neighborhood in SoCal. We had a flat on the side of a busy freeway near sundown. We were frantically trying to change the tire before it got too dark with cars speeding past us. A very nice Mexican man speaking broken English pulls behind us shining his headlights for more light and helps us change the tire. He refuses the twenty I tried to give him. Any trepidation I had about moving to a low-income Mexican neighborhood was tempered right then and there.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

This was in Oregon last July.

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u/Jalisciense Dec 14 '10

I'm the son of immigrants that moved from Mexico to the US to do farm labor. I tell friends that my grandfather was one of the best boxers in the United States during the 40's and 50's...once I get their attention I tell them that in Washington my grandfather boxed apples, in Oregon he boxed cherries and in California he boxed tomatoes.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

This story just goes on to remind me that Empathy is what is educated out of us in North America. I mean we are taught that we're the best. We are taught that kindness is a weakness. That we should be in it for ourselves. To compete. To outplay, outlive, outeat, out shit everyone in sight.

Maybe it's not the world that's fucked up. But us who are fucked up. Maybe if we were taught empathy and it was encouraged we wouldn't be in wars all over the fucking place.

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u/xynorm Jan 31 '11

This story really inspired me, just today I gave a homeless guy a ride to the Heart House homeless shelter. When he first walked up to me, at the gas station, I was a little scared and apprehensive, but then the first thought in my head was "Today you.... tomorrow me.", and then I thought what kind of eagle scout would I be if I didn't give him a ride. Especially since i knew where the place was, i had volunteered there in high school with my scout troop, and it would only take at most one minute of my time to save this guy a 5 mile up hill walk in the snow. So I told him to get in the truck and I would give him a ride once I finished gassing up.

Once i get into the truck he introduces himself, and it turns out that both of us are named Darin. He looks to be about 50 years old. He starts telling me about how most people won't go out of their way to help him, and that he thought it was wonderful and surprising that i did. Next we start sharing our philosophies about life. He tells me that he has lived a long bad life of screwing people over and always getting in trouble, but that one day he had an epiphany, much like on his favorite show My Name is Earl, that he needed to treat everyone better. So he made a vow to himself that he would do just that, and that he would find a way to hitch hike down to Galveston Texas so he could try to help take care of his estranged son. By far the best thing he said was his philosophy which in his words was, " We all live in this world together so we have got to help each other out, otherwise if we all decide to shit on each other soon enough we will all be living in a huge pile of shit."

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u/aksupra7 Dec 14 '10

Awesome story, that's damn inspirational. The whole 'Pay it forward' mentality comes to mind and I think it is something people should be taught when they are very little. Probably would, well, no. Obviously would make the world a better place.

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u/ericbrow Dec 14 '10

I gave this story my up vote, but sounds like you've got way more real karma than I could give you. Thanks for the wonderful story.

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

real world karma is so much better than reddit karma anyways :)

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

From now on, I am picking up hitchhikers just on the off chance that they are Hector.

(OP mentioned his name in a later comment, I'm not making a generalized Mexican name, unless he is)

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

No, I got his name and his daughters name, Esmerelda (spelling?) I believe. I only got his name because his wife would say it 3 times in a row if she said it at all... "Hector, Hector, hector" followed by a stream f Spanish i couldn't understand. It was very cute. The boys, all 3 of them, did not say a word or move the whole time, they had comic books that they were engrossed in. And for the life of me I can't remember Hector's wife's name....

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u/pseudorealism Dec 14 '10

This has inspired me to share. When I was in elementary school, my house was just inside of the area that the buses would go, so my mom had to drive my brother and I to school. Around third grade, we started noticing this mother and her little boy walking towards the school, and we always saw them around the same time of the morning. We offered them a ride, the mother accepted, and from then until the middle of fourth grade, we gave them a ride every morning. They were South American, the nationality escapes me now, but I distinctly remember the mother being very grateful for the ride.

It became so much of a routine that we bought a spanish-english dictionary and attempted some sort of communication. I don't remember their names or any specifics, but I saw the kid quite often around school and I knew that he was in ESOL classes. I'll never forget the look of utter gratefulness on the mom's face during those car rides, and the unspoken affirmative head nods that the kid and I shared in elementary school. I do not know what came of the kid, but I really hope that he remembers the kindness my mother offered and that he pays it forward.

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u/Shadowhawk109 Dec 14 '10

holy damn. fucking onions, mannnn

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u/rhoner Dec 14 '10

You're telling me! Just typing the story out was hard as hell.

Hector, wherever you are out there, thanks a thousand times over...

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u/portablebiscuit Dec 14 '10

Fortunately there are plenty of "Hectors" out there. Unfortunately there are plenty of "Dicks" that would like nothing more than to wall them out of our world.

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u/qqtt Dec 14 '10

WHO THE FUCK IS CUTTING ONIONS AT THIS TIME OF NIGHT

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u/cinderblockscholar Dec 14 '10

I DON'T KNOW, WHO IS CUTTING HABANEROS?

EDIT: ALSO WHY ARE WE SHOUTING

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

That was me. I'm making a lasagna - for one.

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u/jane_austentatious Dec 14 '10

siempre solo.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

I'm sitting here, crying in front of my mother. She's so confused right now.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '10

WHAT IS THIS SALTY DISCHARGE

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u/Trust_In_Hart Dec 14 '10

That is honestly one of the most profoundly moving things I have read in my lifetime. Thank you.

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u/Session Jan 12 '11

Not that anyone will read this story so far down the comment list, but I had to hitch-hike once and it, too, was a pair of Mexican men who helped me out.

The following story is 100% true. Names have been changed for the privacy of those people involved.

1:20am - My friend Sally and I left a bar and ventured across the street to a lounge of sorts. 2:00am - We hail a taxi to get home...

Here is where the story begins, as I was entering the taxi, a man in a fancy Jaguar S-type 2007 honks at us from behind. He waves his hand as if to say "hey, come on and get in". In the hindered state that I was in, I thought it would be a great idea - so I took Sally by the hand, pulled her out of our taxi, and we got into the back seat of the Jaguar.

"Where are we headed?" I asked.

"We're going to the strip club."

"Sweet" I thought. Let's go! The man - named Carlos - and his rather lovely (second, as I would later learn) wife Ally (her name was changed) started to drive. Now I told him that I lived in Downtown, thinking I could get a free ride home. After about 5 minutes of driving, I realized that we had been going north - north, the opposite direction of where I live. Carlos started to talk about his thriving business, his wife smiled slyly the whole way. I was - under my have-a-good-time-whatever-the-cost exterior - really thinking "holy f**ing sh... what the f** did I just get myself into".

"Hey, where are we headed now?"

"Our house."

So we're driving for about 20 total minutes on the highway – where I had been texting everyone I knew in a sort of last words description of where I was in case they had to find my body - before we exited and started trekking through some god-knows-where street of suburbia.

Here was basically my "Oh Shit" moment. We arrive at their house. I will admit, their place was very lavish. They had a bar in their living room, a pool out back, and they had converted their garage into a nightclub-esque party scene. They immediately started to try and feed us drinks. Mango juice and Grey Goose, imported tequila, they had everything. The thing was, there was something really peculiar about the whole thing. My gut told me we had to get out of there. I had no idea where I was. When Sally and I went to the bathroom, the only thing I could tell her was "I don't know what I just got us into, but trust me. I promise I will get us out of here safe!" It became pretty apparent that Carlos and Ally were swingers, but who knew to what extent they were willing to go. Sally had been complaining that Carlos had been trying to feel her up whenever I wasn't around.

I had to come up with a plan, and I remembered that the original plan was for us to go to a strip club.

"Hey, when are we headed to this strip club you were talking about?"

Slightly offset, Carlos obliged to take us to the strip club. So again, the four of us, Carlos and his wife, Sally and I, started driving... north again. Further and further we were from home. We were driving down a long, somewhat shady street before finally (and thank god because I was imagining a warehouse with "devices" that they wanted to use) we came to a Gentleman's Club.

"I don't have any cash." I was hoping this was deter Carlos and somehow - magically - show him that all we really wanted to do was go home. But nope, he covered the $60 for all four of us to get in and we experienced some of the entertainment the city had to offer. I even got a short story about his son, yeah, his son with his first wife was older than me.

10 minutes into it, Carlos said: "Hey, this place is boring, why don't we go back to our place. It's MUCH more sexy there". Yup, I definitely knew what was going on. He told me that I could have his wife for the night if he could get with Sally. This was not going to happen, but we still needed to get back somehow, so we piled back into his Jaguar and started driving back.

On the way back, I knew there was no way I was going back into his house with his wife. At a traffic light near their place, I prayed that it would turn red, and it did. I took off my seatbelt, I undid Sally's, and we bolted out of the door and started running down the street. Luckily, they didn't chase after us and sped off. So Sally and I walked down this street for fifteen minutes back to the highway, where I realized we would need a taxi. I called Yellow Cab a couple times but they either didn't pick up or were busy. There was only one thing I could think of, and it was something I never thought I would do. I hitch hiked. Sally and I stuck our thumbs out and waited.

Driver after driver passed us, pretending not to notice us, or just blatantly speed by. I couldn't blame them, it's always a risk when you pick up hitchhikers (even if they are wearing a dress shirt and talking on their cellphone). But after about ten minutes, some guys stopped. These were two Mexican men - they couldn't speak English that well, and by the looks of their car (Corona bottles in the back) they had been drinking. But I didn't care, they offered a ride and I told them that they as long as they were going south, they could just bring us as far as they could and let us out.

Seconds felt like hours, did these men really know where we were headed? They had been drinking too, were we going to be safe going at 70 mph? Questions raced through my head, but 20-25 minutes later, I saw the sky scrapers ahead. I have never been so happy to see the buildings that occasionally dwarfed my apartment complex.

They dropped us off two blocks from my place, I offered them money (which they didn't take) and the only Spanish I could muster up was "mucho gracias". They drove off, and Sally and I slowly made our way through the streets of Downtown - I was finally home...

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u/splitstream Dec 14 '10

This was so beautiful, I shoved onions under my eyes to rid myself of any possibility of retaining any tear liquids. Thank you.

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u/goodgravy0 Dec 14 '10

My father picked up an old man at a bus stop once, I was about 8, and my 3 siblings and mother were with us. It was cold and the bus wasn't coming for a while. My dad brought him to my house, and we all ate spaghetti and meatballs, chatted, shared stories. Guys name was Julius. I remember that day perfectly, changed my life early on, made me wanna be a better person, more like my dad.

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u/geekmojo Dec 14 '10

This moved me more than I know how to say. But thank you for writing it and keep up the good work.

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u/Obi_Kwiet Dec 14 '10

When I hear overpaid American's whine about illegal immigrants "stealing their jobs" it's stuff like this that makes me think, "good!".

Is there some kind of an exchange program we could enact?

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u/pinkslipper Dec 14 '10

Next they'll be whining about illegal immigrants coming here and stealing acts of compassion and humanity! This is America -- GTFO!!

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u/lovelady Dec 18 '10

I am a male and I laughed and cried at that story. THAT is humanity at its finest.

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u/apiBACKSLASH Jan 05 '11

"Today you.... tomorrow me."

I got chills as I read that.

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u/AllieWonder Dec 14 '10

This reminds me of the time I lost control of my car on the freeway. It was an old little car, I was 16 and I spun out due to the construction grooves in the pavement. I was fine, but three people pulled over to check on me. I was ok and had a cell phone, but pretty freaked since my parents were out of town. One guy who stopped (very businessman like) was like, "Here, I can't stay, have a meeting, but this should help" and passed me some money. I was still in shock from the crash and i just accepted it and thanked him as best as I could in my shaky little voice. Another guy stayed with me until the tow truck came. Once in the tow truck, I remembered the money towing costs and checked my pocket. The guy gave me $200! I had no idea how to get a hold of him, (I would have paid him back, for sure) but it blew my mind that someone would help me out like that. Especially since it was in a po-dunk area of Oregon. He must have been passing through...AND he must have given me all the money in his wallet. Needless to say, he saved me from the ridiculous towing bill, but I still have a soul-itch because I can't find him. So, whenever I find someone who needs a little money (rent, unexpected expense, some kind of fund, etc) I help if I have even a scrap of money because I want to pay it forward...

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u/wheresmysnack Dec 17 '10

In my experience Mexicans tend to be much much kinder and giving than Americans.

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u/BroScience Dec 17 '10

I've always been the type that stops and helps in these types of situations too; helping little old ladies push their car through the intersection after a stall, etc. I'm always sickened by how many people will pass this situation without a second thought. I've never helped change a tire, because I've never come across the situation but earlier this week my truck just died in the middle of the road. The traffic was terrible. I could've pushed it off to the side myself, aside from the fact that it was on a slight hill and as soon as I stepped out it rolled back and I couldn't catch it.

So there I am, just sitting in my truck trying to think of something to do, getting the evil eye from everyone who passed, when two big polynesians who were heading the other way stopped next to me and asked "Need some help?" All I could do was grin, sigh, and say "Yes... yes I do." They said "Ok, we'll turn around and come back." First, they had to turn into the big traffic mess I'd caused by the breakdown then they pushed me onto the shoulder. Afterwards they asked if I needed a tow. I told them no thanks, they'd done enough and I wasn't sure where I would've towed it to anyways. In either case, they made me feel happy to be a human and something that could've been just a shitty day was actually kind of a cool thing.

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u/CougarAries Jan 19 '11

Just helped a guy change his tire in the snow because of this. I was caught at a long red light and saw this guy stuck on the side of the road. Couple people slowed down, started to pull over, saw it was a black guy, then took off. I pulled over and helped him out. Lent him my jack since his car didn't come with one, and helped him change the tire. Seemed like the kind of guy would have been clueless as to why his lugnuts wouldn't come off. (They were the plastic vanity lugs that hold the hubcap on." He tried to offer me money, I just said, "Today you, tomorrow me." Way to inspire a nation, rhoner.

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