Near Miss

Almost died yesterday. No, it wasn't from an aneurysm caused by a Brewers' loss. This happened on the road. Damn, it was close. Worst of all, it may have been my fault. I was making a left turn across a four-lane road and as I was turning left, I looked back to my right to watch some moron who was travelling in a bike lane. As I turned my head to the right, I heard a screeching sound. I looked to the left to see a Mustang slamming to a stop, slamming so hard the tires smoked. I never saw the car. Never. He must've been flying. If there had been an impact, it would've been squarely on the drivers' side door, right into me. If I would've left for my turn a fraction earlier, or if the Mustang driver had been going a wee bit faster, I'm certain there would've been a collision. At the very best, I would've been critically injured. My life didn't flash in front of me. I only saw tire smoke. Not very romantic. I gave a weak little "sorry" wave and headed to work like nothing had happened.

It's typical if you do a lot of driving to be a part of some near-misses every day. Most of the time, my near-misses involve someone wanting to move into my lane and they see me at the last moment. Even if there was to be contact, it would be minor, and it's doubtful I would be hurt. Yesterday was serious business and it left me shaken. I was shaken all afternoon during my SuperCommuter shift, and it felt like I almost got into a half-dozen accidents. I was quiet at home after work as well, so much so that Pumpkin asked numerous times if I was ok. I didn't want to say that I wasn't so I just said I was tired. I'm feeling a little better today, but I drove this morning's shift like there was a drivers' education instructor in the passenger seat.

I hate cliches about life. Life is a precious gift....live life to the fullest every day....any day that ends in your bed is a good day. I think that's all crap. Still, yesterday's near-miss left me appreciative of how delicate life is. Life ain't a gift, but it's sure as hell fragile. A gas line could blow up the house before the end of this blog. A plane could crash into me. The ceiling fan could detach and decapitate me. At least if you have a disease, you're usually able to make your peace with the people you love, mend fences, get everything all in line before your time. If I was taught anything from yesterday (besides being reminded that you need to look 'left, right, left' before turning), it's that I need to take care of things for the little family that I have. I called my mortgage company to begin the process of getting Pumpkin's name on the mortgage. I'll be retaining an attorney to set up a living will. I'll double check my investments to make sure Pumpkin's taken care of in case I'm taken away. As is usually the case, it takes a horrible event to get someone to act. Today, that someone is me.