It’s 10:30pm, and Jared passes under a bridge to the sound of metal clashing on the asphalt road. “What the hon???” He said.

Im about 10 seconds ahead of him, and a wheelbarrow has just been viciously thrown from my 1999 midnight blue Ford Ranger.

Jared turned the corner to see the wheelbarrow laying lifeless on the road, but he didn’t know why, or how. He just heard the noise.

Now let’s jump to the next morning: I’m driving to work to meet up with Ayden, our colleague – I like to call him – and I know I have to tell the previous night’s excitement because the wheelbarrow is bent.

“You see this wheelbarrow, it flew out of my truck last night – it’s messed up – but like most things, the story goes a lot deeper”

“Foibles…” I tell him, “it’s recently been my favorite word

Everyone has them.

Foible (noun): a minor flaw or shortcoming in character or behavior

I like it because it articulates the comfortable idea that everyone has some flaws but they are often minor, and we can still live in sync despite them. I have them, my friends have them, and we learn to accept their foibles or work around them.

Like In elementary school I had an insatiable need to impress. I would twirl myself around desks and chairs, jump and skip in a “cool” manner, all to show off to onlookers – girls especially.

Ayden smoothed out the mulch as I tell the story…

And this continued throughout middle and high school, and even today at times.

As a young boy I once made the shortsighted decision throwing a rock down a hill into a crowd. It wasn’t malicious. I was only trying to “look cool” in front of the people I was with. The logic was: rock. Cool. Tumble. Impress. Not: it’s not smart to roll rocks into unsuspecting crowds. Thankfully the girl the rock hit was okay.

And any time I crash on my mountain bike, it’s often from trying to show off some style or speed for the rider behind me.

It’s as though the universe punishes me for any attempt at vanity – I’m glad it works that way.

Although, progress in self awareness has led me to uncover this foible of mine: poor judgement rooted in an insecure need to impress others; to show off.

So, I tell Ayden, back to the night of the wheelbarrow incident: I was ecstatic – Jared and I had just fixed my truck alongside the road – a great friend bonding experience turned successful, and we were heading back to prep for the next day. Music was blaring – life was good.

I whip around the corner after the tunnel and half thought “it’d be cool if I swerve around the road!” Meanwhile knowing Jared would see it and might think it’s “cool”.

I whipped the wheel hard to the left.

Clunk… clash!!!

I spend the remaining 3 minutes driving back home laughing hysterically. Jared had picked up the barrel, and I knew he was dying laughing as well.

I thought of excuses, like a raccoon on the road or “I thought I saw a deer”, but I confessed between gasping for air and uncontrollable laughing, “dude I was just showing off”

Jared laughed even louder.

We were so hysterical, the next morning my mom asked why there were girls laughing outside so late at night!

“So Ayden, that’s a bit about me, and that’s why the wheelbarrow is bent.”

And we mulched that day, despite the wheelbarrow’s new foible, rolling a tad crooked.