Monday Night/Tuesday Morning July 8th

My day started out beautifully, I could not have asked for better weather and as I left Tucson I got to drive along side the Barnum & Bailey train. How cool is that?
I made great time all the way to LA and had a wonderful Thai diner with my most excellent friend Carol. My plan after that was to drive for another 4 or 5 hours and stop fr the night.












Well, I got back on the road around 8:30 and within 20 minutes of driving I totaled the mini van I was driving.

I was driving north on I-5, near Burbank, traveling about 55mph in heavy LA commuter traffic. I switched from lane 4 to lane 3 and was watching the truck that was about 45 to 50 yards ahead of me. He slammed on his breaks and I slammed on mine. The brakes in the mini-van basically failed. In the 40 yards I was breaking I could barely slow the car down and I rear-ended this poor dude. Luckily no one was hurt and I crunched the front end of the mini-van underneath his bumper. It looked like the “ACME accordion car” from the old Road Runner cartoons. Our bumpers were stuck together in the middle of the highway and we could not move. A CHP officer was actually jumping on the hood of the mini-van trying to get it to bounce enough to get them un-stuck. My air bag did not go off. (I am rather befuddled by that fact!) The bruises that are developing from the seat belt are really very lovely. My collarbone and sternum are bruising up nicely as well. Both of my wrists are extremely sore from being jammed into steering wheel while trying to stop the car.

I F-ing hurt like hell right now and getting more sore as the minutes pass. My neck and lower back are getting very achy. I am going take what drugs I have and hope to get some sleep.

So, right now, I am going to stop complaining and be ever so very grateful that no one was injured seriously. The woman at the Hertz counter at the Bob Hope Airport in Burbank was so sweet and kept the counter open for me for 20 minutes to make sure that I got a new rental and got back on the road. I drove for about another 100 miles before I realized that I truly needed to stop for the night.

I am counting my blessings and counting the 20 plus years since my last car accident. I am much better off this time!