Story Time: Running out of Gas

Early in my career, I was working with a new client. We were out house hunting for the first or second time together. We were up in the Hollywood Hills looking at really fantastic architectural homes. All of a sudden I realized we had a problem. I told my client to hang on. She asked what was wrong and I had to explain to her that we had just run out of gas.

There we are at the top of Laurel Canyon and Skyline Way. I start to coast down, by the time I get to Laurel Pass and my engine is off and I'm just literally coasting. It is a long way down and my client is kind of laughing, and reasonably, kind of nervous. We make it all the way down to Sunset Boulevard. I stop the car because I can't coast into the driveway of the gas station.

I park and walk to the gas station and buy a can of gas. With a gallon of gas now in my car, I drive to the gas station and fill up and drive back up into the canyon to continue our home search.

My client did find a house and has since become such a great friend. And when she refers people to me, she always tells them, make sure he's got a full tank of gas when he shows you houses.