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Rebecca Kabaya
Queuing for fuel is one activity that draws patience out of many motorists, often leading to desperation and frustration. Just imagine the disappointment when a pump runs dry at your turn to refuel? It is worse when one has trailed an excessively winding queue for many hours, even dark ones, only to face such gruesome reality. The heart obviously sinks and curses may involuntarily escape a victim’s lips.
Besides crushed anticipation, such frustration usually comes with regret of long and boring hours spent trailing the line.
To beat the boredom and impatience that comes with the long waits for the precious liquid, leisure activities have started popping up at fuel queues.
Some motorists have come up with methods to keep their spirits high to counter dejection. Many activities have been created to make life in a fuel queue easier.
Leisure activities are now part of the trend. Sometimes queues build up merely on the off-chance anticipating that fuel may be delivered. Common groups that join same queues have emerged. Members keep themselves entertained through witty jokes, anecdotes about the last queue and reunions.
Cooler boxes and small braai stands have also found their way into the equation. Yes, people now braai and drink at any convenient points they find in the environs of their search for the precious liquid.
A snap survey by The Herald on Saturday Lifestyle around the capital last week revealed that some motorists group for draughts game and chess.
Apart from these activities, the fuel queues have also become love nests where couples find time to talk things out especially on weekends.
Time is valuable and people do not want to waste it sitting in the car in a queue doing nothing all day long.
But some situations call for inevitable adjustments. Motorists who spoke to this publication said queues were time-consuming, but they were now using that time to ease stress by doing some leisure activities.
They believe that too much of unmanaged stress can lead to decreased motivation and even burnouts. John Lucas, a motorist who was waiting for fuel at a Harare service station last weekend, said it was important to find effective strategies for this fuel stress and take a break to do what feels different whilst in the queue.
“It is important to find some leisure lines to help cope with stressful moments like these,” he said.
“What makes it worse is waiting there with your car parked not knowing if you will ever get the fuel or it will be exhausted before you get there and all your efforts and time will have gone to waste.”
To ease the pressure, Lucas and his friends have created a WhatsApp group of 20 people.
“In this group we discuss on the day and time we are going to get fuel and we go together. Hanging out with friends while in the queue makes it all different.
“Everyone in the group might not be able to come but at least five to ten individuals can make it. While waiting for fuel we drink our beer, play chess or playing cards and this shifts our focus to something light,” he said.
His friend said most of the time people who see them drinking and laughing together usually think they are not there to get fuel.
“This has helped us because even if I don’t get the fuel l would have had spent my time doing something else than just sitting in the car like a couch potato.”
He added that sometimes they even bring along cooler boxes and a braai stand.
“The rainy season is here and it is going to be a challenge to braai in the open space like we used to do before. However, as men, we will look for plan B and we hope by end of December things will be back to normal so that we will not have to go through these stressful long fuel lines,” he said.
Most interesting are young couples who come and meet during the weekends and spend their time waiting for fuel.
Ian Nzira, a gentleman who is in his early 20s, said he now spends time with his girlfriend in his car waiting for fuel.
Nzira said this is better than not seeing her at all and everything becomes easy with social support.
“Getting fuel is a common challenge these days, therefore I usually look for it over weekends and the queues are sometimes more than five kilometres long, which is just tough.
“Weekends were the special days set aside for time with my family and girlfriend, but it seems finding fuel now comes first and I was losing that precious time.
“Recently I decided to invite my girlfriend to accompany me to Ashbrittle where we joined a long fuel queue. We spent time talking and I did not even realise how long it took to get to the fuel pump,” he said.
He said chatting with his girlfriend is a good diversion from stressing about fuel.
“This has become our norm. Every time we need fuel we go together,” he said.
Thousands of Zimbabweans are queuing for fuel around the country. Motorists have been left stranded after a sudden shortage of fuel, with public transport operators hiking fares.
But Zimbabweans will always find ways to lighten hard situations and pull through insurmountable challenges. Such is the strength that keeps us going.
Online Reporter