Prime Pumps

Bet that owner-fella at the gas station wore a smile as plum self-satisfied as a crocodile just after he's eaten a tasty treat when the owner saw all those cars lining up at his fuel pumps in St. Louis recently. Bet he patted his pot belly and just gloated.

Even at three dollars a gallon, it'd take a passel of hours of straight pumping to sell $6,000 worth of fuel. Musta been a steady stream of cars. Enough to keep the pavement hot all day long.

As the day wore on, bet that owner-fella with the smug smile already saw himself in the new boat he was gonna buy with the profits. Probably didn't bother him much to be charging three dollars or more per gallon.

But it seems, he was counting his chickens before they hatched even though it looked like a sure thing.

I mean, how could he know? That Robin Hood is alive and well and living in St. Louis, Missouri. And Mr. Hood's most recent scam? Reprogramming gas pumps so they disperse free fuel.

The machines at two stations have been reprogramed.

It was a pretty well kept secret. So far, all those customers who lined up to cash in on thousands of dollars worth of "free gas" have kept mum about the situation. They filled and drove off, probably thanking the heavens for the free gift.

And the owner-fellas? Well, their smiles deflated somewhat when they heard the news. And I'd like to feel sorry for them. For their loss. Really, I would.

Except . . .

Well. You know. It's hard to feel sorry for gas-station-owner-gangsters who are goudging the public on a regular basis. In this case, I'm rootin for Robin Hood.
Prime Pumps © 2006 Chaeli Lee Sullivan