I try my best to not adhere to stereotypes however a few weeks ago my driving skills and my gender collided (pun intended 😉 ). About 4 Thursdays ago, I was leaving my house to go to work. I was attempting to turn left onto oncoming traffic (Something I do everyday). This particular Thursday, there were two city maintenance trucks obstructing my view. So, being what I thought was cautious, I tried to pay extra attention to the cars before they were blocked by the trucks.

I then tried to turn left and totally thought I made it until… BAM! I smacked right into a car spinning me around and around. That morning I was already under a lot of stress anyway, so immediately after impact I was literally just like “Shit! Well here’s a great start to the day”. I turned off my car, dialed 911, grabbed my paperwork, and headed over to the other vehicle. I suppose it was the adrenaline but I felt nothing and was more annoyed because I was missing an appointment.

Long story short (are they really ever?), the other people in the car were thankfully ok and not douche bags. The cop on the other hand was a total ass. This was my very first accident, I have a great driving record and he was being a dick for no apparent reason. Since I’ve refused to acknowledge that I’m a Nevada resident (Californian til I die!), I never had my license changed from California. So not only did I get a ticket for the accident but one for that as well. I was seriously near tears because he was so mean and I was texting my mom about it. Then, I realized and thought to myself “Pull it together, you’re an adult and he’s not some schoolyard bully dipping your hair in ink. Suck it up.” So after my inspirational pep talk,  my skin got a little thicker and I calmed down. But seriously, he was an ass.

One thing I was incredibly grateful for was that fact that my company was so amazing during the whole ordeal, they got a towing truck to the accident quickly and had my rental ready to go. I ended up getting the rest of the day off per my boss’ request. I called my parents, assured them that I was ok and that I’d get checked out by a doctor later on just in case. You know parents, they like to worry. Though looking back at the damage done to the car, I suppose they had a reason to be.

One drug test, several insurance calls, and a week later it was decided that the car sustained too much damage to be repaired and that they were going to total it. Again, my company was on the ball and already had another vehicle being sent out to me quickly. I was happy I was getting the same model because I had grown accustomed to bluetooth and satellite radio and my rental did not have any of those options (first world problems, I know).

 

Several things I took away were: wait for red lights on busy intersections. In hindsight if I had not been trying to rush getting to my destination I could have avoided this whole fiasco. I’m incredibly blessed to have walked away completely unharmed. I’ve also learned that I can handle tough situations on my own and I don’t need to go running and crying to mommy and daddy. Furthermore, I’ve learned that some cops are just strange. After the whole ordeal, he actually complemented me and said that I had a great head on my shoulders and am a very responsible young person and that my parents should be proud (Um, compliments don’t count when you’re being an asshole Mr. Police Officer). Lastly, I learned that if I really want a day off from work, I just need to get into a car accident. Well, why didn’t they just say so? 😉