Close Calls

It is very cold today; the high temperature is supposed to be only in the mid-teens. A brisk wind is blowing, making the wind chill something like 10 below 0. The worst thing about the cold is that there are a lot of icy patches still around on sidewalks and on secondary roads. As I discovered, to my chagrin, when I was dropping Daniel off at school this morning.

I opened the car door and stepped out, and the next thing I know I was flat on my back in the street. My first thought was: "Oh, please God, let me not be injured!" I slipped on the ice once when I was living in Portland and tore a ligament in my knee, leaving me in excruciating pain for several days. I can remember crawling from my futon to the bathroom, dragging my bad leg behind me and shuddering every time I accidentally brushed it against the floor. I learned three things from that experience: 1) avoid walking on ice, 2) living alone really sucks sometimes, and 3) never refuse the emergency room doctor's offer of painkillers.

I scrambled to my feet and discovered that I was OK except for a sore coccyx. I guess there's something to be said for having a well-padded posterior. It's still sore this evening, and Tab warns I may feel worse tomorrow. I feel lucky to have escaped so lightly, however.

We had another close call today when the twins and I were driving to Wegmans for some groceries. We were going north on Princeton Pike, a well-traveled two-lane road that runs between Lawrenceville and Princeton. A UPS truck that was approaching in the opposite lane braked suddenly, and a huge, rectangular sheet of snow and ice flew off the top of the truck, headed right for the minivan. I remember seeing that white thing flying directly for us and knowing there was nothing I could do to avoid the collision. I shrieked and ducked, fearing that it would shatter the windshield. It hit us hard, but fortunately it was more snow than ice. It flew off to the side leaving just a tiny hole in the windshield.

I glanced in the rearview mirror, debating about whether I should turn around and follow the UPS truck to get the license plate so that I could file a complaint. It is a state law that snow and ice be cleared from the tops of motor vehicles to prevent just this sort of incident. The truck was already out of view, though, so I abandoned the idea.

The rest of the day has been uneventful, for which I am grateful. I can do without any more near misses today.

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