Accident

I got into my first official car accident on Tuesday. It involved multiple cars, the police, tow trucks, and now, insurance companies.

After work, I was due to be at a friend’s house for little get-together. As I drove on one of the main drags towards her house going at about 40 miles per hour, I was surprised to hear a loud thump and then to feel my car be hit near the right rear while being dragged several yards. Once I stopped moving, I thought to myself, “Huh…that was interesting. Did I cause that? Did I do something wrong? Nope. Good thing. Better call the police”.

I called 9-1-1 and requested a police officer come to the scene of the accident. The emergency officer asked if we needed medical attention, which I declined, as it looked as if the other individuals involved were okay.

I got out of my car and approached the others involved in the accident to assure that everyone was okay. We all reported to each other that we were fine. Being cocky, I said, “So, what was that all about? Wasn’t I going fast enough for you people?”. As it turned out, the guy two cars behind me decided he needed to find a receipt. While doing so, he seemingly accelerated. The young woman behind me noticed in her rearview mirror that the distance between her and the gentleman seemed to be decreasing. Consequently, she attempted to pull into the bike lane to get out of his way. At that time, he plowed into her forcing her into me.

When the police officer arrived, all three people involved in the accident were on cell phones. He looked at us and said, “Who are you talking to? Get off your phones”. Hmm…nice and hello and good day to you too sir. Since my call was done (I just called my friend to inform her I’d be a few minutes late), I got off of my phone. In all of my wisdom, I restrained myself from saying, “Bite Me” to the officer and instead said, “Wow” to which he promptly said, “Wow, huh?”. Oohps.

The officer requested our licenses, registrations, and insurance cards, which I promptly produced. Of course, because I am me and do not like dealing with the pile of things on my kitchen table (including my insurance cards), my insurance card was expired. I thought for sure that I would get a ticket for the same, as I clearly irritated the officer with my comment. Alas, I did not; as he was too busy writing my buddy with the receipt (which he found, by the way) a ticket for following too close. He only did that, however, after we explained the accident to him about 3 dozen times (seriously, we all had the same story, how hard is it to figure things out?).

Of the three people involved, I was the only one lucky enough to drive my car away. The other two cars were totaled. I was thankful that I was able to still drive the car and that no one seemed to be hurt. Although the accident was as inconvenience of sorts, it could have been much worse. As horrible as it sounds, I am thankful the girl behind me blocked the guy from running into me, as I have a feeling I’d be in some pain today had she not.

Upon inspection of the car the next day, I found out that things were a little worse than I thought initially. It appears that every panel on the right side of my car is ruined, as is one of my wheels. It also appears that the damage goes beyond the panels and into the sub frame of the car.

Of course, in accordance to my luck, it does not appear that the man’s insurance will cover the cost of the damages. I am still talking with the insurance agent about the same though and trying to determine if I should even bother with the repairs.

I am starting to think that the car is possessed —perhaps its juju is off or something. I am even contemplating trading it in for another one with a better vibe. On the other hand, if I choose to remain positive, I recognize that I have experienced another milestone of sorts (my first accident) and am thankful that I was not hurt and think that the poor car has been through a lot lately…

I hope this is it for awhile…