So many bad things have happened to me on my birthday.
The Space Shuttle Columbia blew up. I found out as I was driving home from college exams completely stressed out and feeling like I'd failed.
Someone stole my Manx cat just after I had been laid off and dumped by my fiancee.
I was "let go" by the Giant Memphis Autoparts Retailer for my birthday 2 years ago.
Anyway, I managed to make it through this day without getting "let go," losing a cat, or having a space shuttle explode. No one at work acknowledged my birthday, no lunch dates or anything like that, but no one called me into a conference room and told me I was being cut either. So I was pretty paranoid by the time I was supposed to drive home in the cold rain. I knew something was bound to happen.
In traffic people were aggressive, but not in a tailgating, run the stop sign kind of way. Well, OK, one person did run the stop sign on Trinity and nearly hit me, but that happens every Friday. And someone did tailgait me all down Walnut, but I flicked the mirror to the side and ignored them. And someone ...
OK, people were obnoxious in a tailgating, run the stop sign kind of way. But I was paranoid and it was Friday and cold and raining. I was expecting it.
When I got to My Little Redneck Town there is a section of road that was recently widened, giving us 2 lanes going in each direction for a ways. But it is a recent thing and despite the bright white dashed lines showing 2 lanes some people just can't figure out how to stay in their own lane. Today was such a day.
A white Chevy van was driving mostly in the left lane and somewhat in the right lane. I was in the right lane passing him by. He saw me but didn't worry about getting out of my lane. Usually when people are driving partly in the other lane on this road they'll at least get back in their own lane when another car is passing by. This person didn't feel the need.
Have I mentioned that you can hit me and I don't give a damn?
I ignored him and continued passing him. He came over even more and sideswiped me. It was just a little scrape, enough that I could hear the metal on metal, but not feel anything significant jolting up my spine. As I said before, it was cold and raining and my birthday. You want to drive in my lane and hit me on my birthday? Fine. You stop and get out in the rain. I'm going home. It's Friday.
I kept driving. He was now behind me. At the 4-way-stop which we eventually came to I went straight. He turned left and took off. When I got home I glanced at my truck and didn't notice anything significant. The fender and door were still attached. I had all my bumpers. Everything looked straight. I was relieved. I had made it all the way home without having any major disasters striking me. My cats were both there, I was still employed, no one died, my wife was glad to see me, and basically everything was fine.
One more birthday down. I made it. Now to take the phone off the hook and go to bed.
You have read this article with the title Loonies On The Path - part IX - Sideswiped. You can bookmark this page URL http://thebohemianbunny.blogspot.com/2005/01/loonies-on-path-part-ix-sideswiped.html. Thanks!
