Twenty-five miles yesterday for a total of 1,391 from home.
Today was my day off but a school in Jonesborough, TN (Tennessee's oldest town, est. 1779) wanted me to come and speak to the fourth graders. They were great kids and wore me out. Now I'm home and watched another episode of "Overhaulin". I love that show.
Guess I'll veg out tonight. Then tomorrow I go teach the 5th-8th grade talented and gifted students at Walters State. Fun, but more tired.
*********************
Yesterday afternoon, Cindy and I were driving to the FedEx plant across town to pick up a package. We got to the corner of Morris Blvd and Cumberland Avenue, which is a bit steep. I was driving and stopped at the light. In the left lane, just to our left, a black hatchback in the front position started rolling backwards and bumped the SUV behind it. Cindy cried out, "They are rolling backward and they're going to hit that other car!" Sure enough, about six feet worth. I have been wrongly accused and I know that if you are in the back, you are likely going to be accused of failing to stop in time. So I sent Cindy on to FedEx and I got out and spoke to the woman driving the SUV. Did she want me to be a witness because I saw that whole thing. Oh, no, there is no damage, it'll be OK. I was out of earshot of the very very old lady chain smoker and her just very old chain smoking passenger. "Look, it's up to you, but I'm telling you that it looks like you hit her and she says everything is OK now, but tomorrow, when she comes down with whiplash and a huge scratch on her rear bumper, the police will be calling you." "You really think so?" I've seen it happen in this town." "Well, maybe I should call the police. Will you stay?" "Sure." [I didn't tell her I live for this kind of thing.]
So she called and I told her that she should probably move her care off the street. The old old lady chain smoker wouldn't. In fact, she left it where it was, no hazard blinkers, engine running, and walked away. I was away with the victim and giving her my info. The old had came up to me with her just very old friend and screamed in my face, wagging her finger at me: "YOU JUST NEED TO MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS! YOU HAVE NO BUSINESS STICKING YOUR NOSE IN THIS! NOTHING HAPPENED! THERE WAS NO DAMAGE AND SO THE POLICE DON'T HAVE TO COME!" I was astounded. The SUV lady's mouth hit the ground. I said to the old woman, forcefully, "I ALWAYS call the police so the other person doesn't suddenly claim injury and damage the next day and get me in trouble. Your car rolled backward and hit her." "MY CAR IS AN AUTOMATIC AND IT CAN'T ROLL BACKWARD! SHE RAN INTO ME! YOU JUST KEEP YOUR NOSE OUT OF THIS!" "Automatics roll backwards on steep hills. Yours did. I saw it, this lady saw it, and my wife, who will be back shortly saw it first and announced it. When the police get here, we have three identical statements to the truth here." Then I laughed out loud and shook my head. She was still glaring at me and standing nose to belly button to me, and I just said, "You are a bitter, angry old woman and I'm sorry for you." She and here fried were lighting cigarettes off their dying ones and throwing the butts around like rose petals at a wedding. She harrumphed and stormed off.
I looked at the SUV lady and she just shook her head and said, "My gosh...it's true. She was going to blame me for everything." "I don't think she did it on purpose." "No, she's just clueless and didn't have any idea what what going on around her."
The officer showed up and the SUV lady said she wanted to file a report, and the very very old woman with the chain smoking habit so bad she was probably thirty but looked 200, yelled, "I HAVE AN AUTOMATIC AND IT CAN'T ROLL BACKWARD!" The officer said, "Ma'am, I have an automatic and it rolls backward on steep inclines like that one you were one. You have to be careful and keep your foot on the break." That shut her up for good.
He asked me what happened and I told him right in front of Cigarette Smoking Woman and Cigarette Smoking Sidekick. I said my wife would be right back if he wanted a third witness. He took our id's and checked us out. I was fervently hoping Cigarette Smoking Woman was a white Muslim terrorist on Interpol's Most Wanted List who had outstanding warrants and was breaking some EPA toxic waste dumping law and he could haul her in. As the cop was in his car, and the two smoke stackettes were in theirs, I talked to SUV Woman. She is a teacher at my boss's kid's school so we hit it off. I told her that my wife was the nice office lady at Alpha Intermediate School. She re-iterated how relieved she was that I had stopped to act as witness. She had no idea that people would do such things. I told her, "Always call the police and file a report. They will take pictures, and statements, and if someone offers to stay and testify, accept."
I believe I saved a woman a huge headache, some money, and helped put away the Wicked Witch of the South.
Bye.
No comments:
Post a Comment