The team of three drove North towards City Center for the gathering before the breast cancer race. Does "breast" or "cancer" get capitalized? Surely I feel right proper about the noun that is Breast, but I feel that cancer needs to be delivered small insults at every turn, given its malevolent history. From now on: Breast cancer. Up yours, disease.
Much rain on the road, my favorite-to-malign Alaskan Way Viaduct, AKA: The 99. The exit was to Western Ave, which exit you sort of rise up to, and then instantly drop down from, with an ill-advised crosswalk at the bottom. We barely stopped in time to avoid hitting the car in front of us. The car behind us was unable to do as well.
"Oh shit!" My wife, driving.
"What? We're stopped." Me, just in time to hear the skidding tires. I didn't know from whence, but for some reason, no part of my brain considered that it might be bearing down from our six. I just scanned left, right, and front to no avail, and then felt the jolt. It wasn't much of an impact, at least we and the child didn't seem to think so, and the rear end of the pretty little Acura lady-car that my wife drives wasn't much moved by it, either (Briefly: I have driven in 3 different models of Acura, enough times to pass judgment on all of them in conditions up to and including deep, heavy snow and ice. If I sprung a battery of new thumbs, they would all be "up" for Acura. If I liked the styling a bit more, they would be well near the top of my new car list). The steel beam that is the hidden part of the bumper came loose and was hanging, as was the left side of the dual exhaust and its muffler. I yanked the bumper out, re-hung the exhaust in its grommet, popped a body panel back into place, and we drove home. You would have to be told there was an accident in order to spot the evidence on her car. By this point in our industrial evolution, that is exactly as it should be.
His Mid-90's Toyota didn't fare so well, but front-ends are built to crumble anymore. As a result, he fared just fine. The car was towed away.
It was an exercise in decency through and through, but for a silly little lady who came late to the party. She nearly stopped in time, but ultimately gave a little bumber-tap to the car that had hit ours. After looking about and talking to us for a few minutes she decided she was comfortable with the way things were, and she informed us that she was leaving. My wife and I noted her license plate number, which the police were eager to record so they could properly cite her for a hit and run. I noted her demographic as being particularly Seattle, and so was unsurprised by her eagerness to ignore her civic duty here. Civic duty is a thing best saved for gatherings and celebrations of civic duty, not for actual community interaction, and she, too was on her way to the breast cancer race. Can't let a little thing like a car accident in which you make yourself responsible to two other drivers get in the way of your need to be seen and to be able to tell people about the supernice thing you did today. Morgan's list has its standard-bearers here in Seattle, that's for certain.
But decency it was. The fellow who hit us did no carping, we did no finger pointing, the police were simply as professional as can be, and the very first thing everyone did was to make sure that everyone else was ok. Everyone except the 5'3", 200lb diesel female pit bull with the high-and-tight haircut who was, unremarkably, only concerned about herself. I swear people, the Seattle thing is not a stereotype, it's evidence. Of what? I'll leave you to work that out.
17 comments:
...the Seattle thing is not a stereotype, it's evidence.
Equaled and possibly exceeded only by that SFO thing. IT IS evidence, indeed.
I'm glad you and yours are OK, Andy.
Dang that sucks, Andy. I think I recall correctly the ramp you have in mind, and it is a bee-yotch. Glad the injury was confined to metal and grommets, relatively costless things.
Morgan - It is a pretty blind exit. The police said accidents are pretty common there.
Thanks for the well-wishes, fellas.
I dread the day that I might find myself in SFO, Buck. Never been, except on a non-stop drive through, and never plan to go.
Andy, to be blunt, I despise your city. Avoid it like the plague, with most visits mandated by work. I refuse to spend a dime of my money within the limits of the city. Overboard? Perhaps, but a tiny way to voice my opinion. While I'm certain that the city is filled with many good people, it is populated with just as many who fit the description of your hit and run driver. I'm glad you had the wherewithal to get her plate number.
Re: The Western Ave Exit. I was there Sunday morning on my way to pick up Mrs. BR and her family at Pier 91. Two cars had mixed it up at the top of the ramp. In the vicinity of the aforementioned crosswalk were about two dozen people who can only be described as "thugs". A block later was the small church being guarded from said ilk by SPD.
We may have our own problem out here in the sticks, but at least we aren't on top of each other.
Sunday morning? About 8:30/9:00? "Two cars had mixed it up at the top of the ramp."
Could have been us. We were about half way down the ramp when the crashing stopped. Did you see some young goof trying to slow down traffic up there? That would have been me. Or an older goof doing the same? That would have been the guy who hit us.
I don't remember seeing the band of thugs, though.
Just reread this. Did your little mixup occur around 0830 on Sunday? If so, I drove right past you.
Oh, and to echo Buck, I'm glad that you and your family were unhurt.
When I went through, there was a Police car at the top of the ramp, with the flares out.
I know the exit. It's a bad one. Nearly as bad as the 99 on ramp at the south end of the Battery St. tunnel. I've come close a few times on that one. Glad you guys are ok.
Move out of the city and onto the Island. Lot's of bike commuters on the Bainbridge run.
I know a good real estate agent...
Mark - You and your GOD DAMNED APOSTROPHES! It's just plain "lots." I'll be reporting you to Gerard, anon.
BR - as we continue to step on each other's comment toes: Yes, that was us. Small world.
Small world, indeed.
"Comment toes"? That's a good analogy. Could be that one or both of us should be working. Me at least.
And to reiterate: glad everyone is OK.
Punctuation Nazi. My mistake.
You sure there's no apostrophe in "toes"?
Thanks, BR.
Mark, its just to eazy sumtimez.
Glad everyone is OK.
Happened to me years ago, a little Japenese car hit my '79 LTD, totalled the damn thing. The LTD was fine, a smudge of paint on the bumper, cop couldn't believe it till I showed it to him.
Thank you, tim.
I'm sure you've seen the video where they pit a new car against some old 60's or 70's era land yacht in a head-on collision. The physical damage is much, much less on the old boat, but the passenger (test dummy) in the newer car was significantly better off.
Well thankfully no one was hurt. That's all that matters.
I drive a 2003 Acura TL and it is by far the best car I've ever driven. When it's time to replace her, I'll be looking at Acura's again. Frankly I love the body style of mine, haven't liked them until the 2010s.
For important service the Acura dealership we use is top notch. And Acura itself is pretty nifty - we had to replace the transmission a couple of years ago. Recall issue. Piece of cake, no muss no fuss.
I've been a total of two car accidents, one put me in the hospital too many years ago to count, the last found me getting rammed by a small Korean lady while I was stopped at a red downtown light.
It ended with a large exchange of cash, no police or insurance adjusters involved. A very civilized transaction, as far as accidents go.
Reminds me of when my folks had a place in Mexico Daphne. They told us all when we came to visit that if we were ever in any kind of an accident, it was customary to settle it on the spot quickly with cash. The last thing you wanted to do was get the police involved.
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