Esso

About this location

A few stories people tell about this place

1. It was just another morning at Esso, but something odd started happening as soon as a delivery driver pulled up with a truckload of gasoline. Every time he opened the back door, a stray cat would jump out and run straight for the cash register. The employees tried shooing it away, only for the cat to return every day like clockwork. Finally, one morning an old lady walked in and asked if she could adopt the little furball. Everyone agreed—it seemed that Esso had found its new mascot. From then on, whenever someone filled their tank, they’d see the same friendly face greeting them from behind the counter.

2. A little boy stood wide-eyed, staring at the pump nozzles as if they were alien creatures. Each time he approached, the numbers on the price display would flicker and change, dancing like fireflies. Finally, an old man walked up and whispered, ‘Sonny, those pumps are just having a bit of fun with you.’ The boy smiled, relaxed, and watched as the prices settled down. From then on, whenever anyone asked why his eyes lit up at Esso, he’d simply say, “It’s where the magic happens.”

3. At Esso, a sign above the pumps read: ‘Fill up with gas and leave your worries behind.’ One day, after a particularly stressful week, a delivery driver did exactly that—and never returned. A few days later, his worried neighbor stopped by for some milk. Seeing the car still parked there, he knocked on the door—only to find it unlocked and dusty inside. Inside Esso, an old radio played softly in the background, while the delivery driver dozed off, completely contented, surrounded by empty soda cans and newspapers from last month.

4. At Esso, an old man parked his car and noticed something strange on the windshield wiper—a tiny plastic dinosaur. He shook it off, but every day after that, a different toy appeared: a miniature cow, then a teddy bear, and finally, a tiny spaceship. No one claimed responsibility. Finally, one day there was just a small note: ‘Sorry for the mess, your friendly neighborhood mechanic.’ Turned out, it was an enthusiastic youngster who thought it’d be fun to leave toys at the gas station—little did he know, everyone in town now called him ‘Toy Boy Mechanic!’