Just Like in the States

All fix-a-flat places have the same smell, type of mechanics, and female receptionist.  The smell is oil rubber mixed with a slight hint of exhaust; the office/waiting area is freezing cold furnished with 2 couches, a drink machine, and a table of free, old, cold coffee from the A.M brew; Car magazines and one kid's book sloppily cover a table providing reading material for the lucky folks waiting; and the same female receptionist trying to run the joint as cleanly as possible in a male/oil/grease dominated environment.  But all this detail is fascinating to me because it provided a sense of familiarity, a brief moment of feeling as though I was in the states!  So this past week when I was waiting for the tire to be fixed (OH and if you have a monterro know their tires are "go flat prone" on mountain roads because this makes number 2 in 2 weeks) I was taken to the states, waiting inside any mechanics waiting area, wishing I had a jacket!