Just another day

OK, whoever is out there praying for my life to be interesting, you can stop now. Thank you very much. I guess I could get mad at such things or I can make a fun story out of it….

On the first day that I get out and drive in almost 3 months, due to my leg injury, I just wanted to get out and celebrate my road to recovery. Did I want to make a difference in the world, was I looking for adventure? No, I just was going for a simple drive to the Y.

Our swim bags are packed, and we are ready to go swimming. I hobble to the car, get Alyssa in her seat, and hobble to the driver’s side. So far so good. I back out of the drive. The right foot is a bit tender but not enough that I can’t drive. We head on down the road and onto the highway. The YMCA is less that 8 miles from or house. I talked to my wife Beth, and she plans on meeting us there.

Then hiccup, hiccup, what is the car doing?!? Losing power, look at the gas gauge and it is resting very comfortably on the red line. Just great!. The car was last driven by our teenager…… Now to her defense Beth tells me later that she knew it was low but that Sarah could drive it to school and she would have enough to get to her class and back. (She forgot to inform me of this matter) Minor detail. Yea right.

So now what? I can’t pull off to the shoulder, as there is no shoulder. They have those wonderful cement barriers, because they are working on the road. (When are they not working on this road?) Traffic on this road is always bad, and now, I have the power to make it worse! I call Beth and humbly admit that I am out of gas and in the middle of the road. “Which road” she says. I say “The really busy highway, the one that has cars backing up for miles.” God, haven’t I been humbled enough? My wife has to bring me gas. Swallowing my pride is quite tasty. While I’m at it, I also decide to call Highway Patrol as I look behind me and see the entire city of Charlotte on the road behind me as I have successfully narrowed the road to one lane during rush hour. Gee, are we having fun yet?

Did I mention that we were in one of those areas on the Highway where cell phone reception comes and goes? Like halfway between 2 towers. So I’m having to repeat to the 911 people, Yes on I77, North, White, White Volvo, I77, North, (Please hold as we direct your call……….) Can’t they just look on all these cameras they have installed?

Watching my rearview mirror, wondering which car, or if my luck holds out a truck, is going to rear end me at 60+mph. I keep telling Alyssa that she is going to be the first to die, but daddy will be right behind. (No I did not say that!) I kept telling her that she needed to keep her seat belt on. Go ahead and try to explain to a 3 year old why we are just sitting in the middle of the highway while cars go speeding past. She says, can we listen to some music? Sure it may drown out the noise of the crash a bit.

Why am I thinking so negatively? We are in a Volvo! Hey if you are going to play in traffic, what better car to do it in. They may even make a commercial out of us, showing what happens before and after we get hit by a truck! Now we are talking!

A wonderful guy stops and pulls in front of me. Asks to help, and then after finding I was totally unprepared for such a situation, goes and gets a flare, lights it and places it a few car lengths behind me. Wow, there are helpful people in the world. Perhaps I should try that some time. Well the flair gave a nice space behind and reduced the possibility of getting hit. Well for all of 5, (maybe only 2) minutes, until people ran over it!!!! I think one actually was aiming for it! Did I say this was rush hour?

Well my wife gets there before Motorist Assistance does. I’m sure they would have gotten there before midnight. So there is really no easy way to get to me. We come up with a plan for her to go on the service road next to the southbound I77. All she will have to do it walk down a small hill, climb over the cement barrier, cross over 4 lanes of nonstop traffic to save her husband and child. Well my male pride kicks in (what little I have left) and I say to her via cell phone that I will come to her. Great heroic idea! I will help yo…. Oh I forgot. I’m on crutches!!! It is all I can do to hobble to the bathroom, let alone cross 4 lanes of traffic! Oh I also have a 3 year old that wants to get out and look at all the cars! So instead I’m going to get the privilege of watching my wife get hit by a truck trying to cross 77 during rush hour holding a can of gas. At least she will be happy; she has her phone with her.

Well an angel must have cleared the road because in under a minute of her getting to the highway, there is a break in traffic and she was able to walk across. She did not even have to sprint (my wife will tell you that she does not run) she walked. Well call it a quick stride.

So I sit in the driver’s seat as she puts gas in the car, enjoying my humble pie (mmm good). In a short while we are driving to the gas station where we fill it up. So now what shall we do? Aw heck, let’s have some fun and go swimming! I say, sure let’s live it up!

Lessons Learned:

• So if you are looking for a cheap thrill and a way to affect the lives of thousands of people (we had traffic backed up for miles) just head to your nearby Highway during rush hour and stop in the road and enjoy the view!


• If you every think that we are in control of our lives, that you know will happen in a day, you are either living in a padded cell, or clueless to the reality of life.