Life is fucking precious
I'm sorry but some shit that happens in this world should make you realize how fragile, how delicate, how special, and how precious your life is. For those of you who don't know me but regularly stalk me in your own ways, I work for Progressive Insurance. That means I do all the dirty work after an accident happens. One of those tasks is appraising the vehicle.
I had a terrible car that I looked at today. To cut it short, it was a fatality. The woman was TWENTY FOUR FUCKING YEARS OLD. I'm 23, close enough. What if I were to fucking DIE in a car accident tomorrow? HOLY SHIT. Nevermind the bullshit I wouldn't have an opportunity to accomplish, what about the way I left Earth? Probably didn't say I love you to my parents the last time I talked to them, probably in some stupid fight with some of my good friends, probably didn't cherish a damn thing I did and took it all for granted- we ALL do. But seriously, think right now, for one second, everything you would want to change if you were to die in an hour. And the scariest part of it all is, it can happen to anyone. She wasn't drunk, there wasn't another vehicle involved- she either fell asleep, or lost control- be it avoiding another animal or what have you. And boom- roof caved in, car was a fucking mangled mess, and she passed away. And there I am, writing an estimate on this vehicle, completely creeped out thinking not more than a week ago there was a lively 24 year old woman probably in the prime of her fun stage in life, rocking out to whatever music she may have loved, calling her friends to say she would see them later..... without even knowing. To be honest, I had a lot of trouble at this inspection. It just had an eerie feel to it, especially being so similar age wise to myself- maybe she had a serious boyfriend, maybe they were planning on moving in together. I thought about where I am in my life right now- I just started a new career- I'm planning on a big move, to a new city, in a matter of just over a month- I have so much I am looking forward to that hasn't even happened yet. Chances are she was in the exact, same, spot. She had her entire life ahead of her to look forward to, and that all vanished in a couple minutes- and what comes of it? Some other doofus goes out to her car, so he can call the parents and let them know that the car is totaled and since it was brand new and just financed they are going to get about $500 back on it- how thrilling, I bet they are anxiously awaiting my call.
I'm not trying to say everyone should walk around in a suit of armor, walking on their tippie toes, being careful never to deviate from the completely safe. Without risks, we cannot fully enjoy our lives. The thing is, be smart about what you do- not saying in this case she was necessarily stupid, it was just a freak accident as far as we can tell. But plenty of people do plenty of stupid shit that lead to plenty of stupid injuries or deaths. I just wish we all thought about enjoying our lives while making sure those important to us, knew that we were always thinking about them, or kept them in mind when it mattered most.
There are currently 3 separate accidents within our office with a fatality involved- one is a case with a woman I had handled a simple claim with just over a month ago. ONE MONTH AGO, I was talking to this lady, joking with her, making small talk, helping her get her vehicle fixed and everything worked out. And now, she and her child have passed away because of a car accident- that BLOWS my mind! There is an article in the New Haven Advocate this week about how fatal car accidents are on the rise, and it's a scary, scary thing. When I see people that don't wear their seatbelt, I cringe- I myself was in a terrible accident at the age of 17- I fell asleep after work on a hot summer day ( I worked landscaping, 5am-3pm in the summer) and drove off the road and dead into a tree. I woke up to an airbag, intense pain in my shoulder, and my passenger screaming and crying in pain. I looked through my broken windshield and it all came to me, I started screaming WHY.. for a second. Until I noticed something flickering at the edge of my hood- a FLAME?? My car was on FIRE? Holy shit, I thought. Get the fuck out of the car, I tell my passenger. He can't, the door won't open. I had my seatbelt on, I always do- I threw my door open and ran to his side. Luckily the window was crank and we were able to get it down- I had to drag him out by the window and hobble into the road to cry for help- now that little flame had turned into a small fire. What the fuck, why am I such a fuckup, that was all I could think at the time. An ambulance came, eventually.... since our injuries were minor, they gave the fire truck priority. I remember sitting in the back of a pickup truck and hearing the crackling... and then the blast. My car exploded, twice actually- and was left burnt to a crisp, mostly everything melted. What if I hadn't woken up? Holy shit.. what if. And to make things worse, the whole road was shut down. Well that road happens to be the same way my father would take to get home- and as he's on his way- he had to take a detour because they told him there was a big accident and the road was blocked off. My poor fucking father had to worry, knowing I take that road, hoping to God for the next 2 hours until he heard from the hospital that I was alive. WEAR A FUCKING SEATBELT- even though in this case it wouldn't have saved this young woman's life, it sure as fuck, helped to keep me where I am today. I walked away from that with only a broken collarbone and short my first car. But I had my life, I won the game, that day.
That shit made me stop and think... a lot. I changed a lot of things about myself, habits, ways of thinking, etc. Shit, that accident may be the reason I have some of these wild blogs in the first place. But today was a very humbling experience, left the rest of my day very somber. In fact the first thing I did when I stopped home to see the family was hug them and tell them I loved them. I even went up to each pet and gave them their fair share, lucky bastards. It's sad that it would take something like that for us to act loving at all times, but it's unfortunately true. Think of how many of us take for granted the little things- the love of family most importantly- the "affection" of friends, the caring of others, it goes unnoticed and underappreciated too damn much. I can't sit here and say I am going to appreciate every moment of my life, but there are little things we can each do to try and make those who deserve it, realize they are worth a little extra effort, or a little extra appreciation. I'm sorry I don't have anything funny to say, I tried to keep the rest of my day pretty upbeat, I would hate to drag anyone down with me. But there are serious things that none of us ever think about, that should always be in the back of our heads. Death is one. It can come so easily, without warning, just like this unfortunate young lady. I guess my main point, is watch what you do, and which people you hurt, because you never know when there may not be a chance to come back on it all. I am not a religious person but I pray she went peacefully and is in a better place- because you know there are a hundred and fifty things, she would have changed, if she knew she were going to die that night.
I had a terrible car that I looked at today. To cut it short, it was a fatality. The woman was TWENTY FOUR FUCKING YEARS OLD. I'm 23, close enough. What if I were to fucking DIE in a car accident tomorrow? HOLY SHIT. Nevermind the bullshit I wouldn't have an opportunity to accomplish, what about the way I left Earth? Probably didn't say I love you to my parents the last time I talked to them, probably in some stupid fight with some of my good friends, probably didn't cherish a damn thing I did and took it all for granted- we ALL do. But seriously, think right now, for one second, everything you would want to change if you were to die in an hour. And the scariest part of it all is, it can happen to anyone. She wasn't drunk, there wasn't another vehicle involved- she either fell asleep, or lost control- be it avoiding another animal or what have you. And boom- roof caved in, car was a fucking mangled mess, and she passed away. And there I am, writing an estimate on this vehicle, completely creeped out thinking not more than a week ago there was a lively 24 year old woman probably in the prime of her fun stage in life, rocking out to whatever music she may have loved, calling her friends to say she would see them later..... without even knowing. To be honest, I had a lot of trouble at this inspection. It just had an eerie feel to it, especially being so similar age wise to myself- maybe she had a serious boyfriend, maybe they were planning on moving in together. I thought about where I am in my life right now- I just started a new career- I'm planning on a big move, to a new city, in a matter of just over a month- I have so much I am looking forward to that hasn't even happened yet. Chances are she was in the exact, same, spot. She had her entire life ahead of her to look forward to, and that all vanished in a couple minutes- and what comes of it? Some other doofus goes out to her car, so he can call the parents and let them know that the car is totaled and since it was brand new and just financed they are going to get about $500 back on it- how thrilling, I bet they are anxiously awaiting my call.
I'm not trying to say everyone should walk around in a suit of armor, walking on their tippie toes, being careful never to deviate from the completely safe. Without risks, we cannot fully enjoy our lives. The thing is, be smart about what you do- not saying in this case she was necessarily stupid, it was just a freak accident as far as we can tell. But plenty of people do plenty of stupid shit that lead to plenty of stupid injuries or deaths. I just wish we all thought about enjoying our lives while making sure those important to us, knew that we were always thinking about them, or kept them in mind when it mattered most.
There are currently 3 separate accidents within our office with a fatality involved- one is a case with a woman I had handled a simple claim with just over a month ago. ONE MONTH AGO, I was talking to this lady, joking with her, making small talk, helping her get her vehicle fixed and everything worked out. And now, she and her child have passed away because of a car accident- that BLOWS my mind! There is an article in the New Haven Advocate this week about how fatal car accidents are on the rise, and it's a scary, scary thing. When I see people that don't wear their seatbelt, I cringe- I myself was in a terrible accident at the age of 17- I fell asleep after work on a hot summer day ( I worked landscaping, 5am-3pm in the summer) and drove off the road and dead into a tree. I woke up to an airbag, intense pain in my shoulder, and my passenger screaming and crying in pain. I looked through my broken windshield and it all came to me, I started screaming WHY.. for a second. Until I noticed something flickering at the edge of my hood- a FLAME?? My car was on FIRE? Holy shit, I thought. Get the fuck out of the car, I tell my passenger. He can't, the door won't open. I had my seatbelt on, I always do- I threw my door open and ran to his side. Luckily the window was crank and we were able to get it down- I had to drag him out by the window and hobble into the road to cry for help- now that little flame had turned into a small fire. What the fuck, why am I such a fuckup, that was all I could think at the time. An ambulance came, eventually.... since our injuries were minor, they gave the fire truck priority. I remember sitting in the back of a pickup truck and hearing the crackling... and then the blast. My car exploded, twice actually- and was left burnt to a crisp, mostly everything melted. What if I hadn't woken up? Holy shit.. what if. And to make things worse, the whole road was shut down. Well that road happens to be the same way my father would take to get home- and as he's on his way- he had to take a detour because they told him there was a big accident and the road was blocked off. My poor fucking father had to worry, knowing I take that road, hoping to God for the next 2 hours until he heard from the hospital that I was alive. WEAR A FUCKING SEATBELT- even though in this case it wouldn't have saved this young woman's life, it sure as fuck, helped to keep me where I am today. I walked away from that with only a broken collarbone and short my first car. But I had my life, I won the game, that day.
That shit made me stop and think... a lot. I changed a lot of things about myself, habits, ways of thinking, etc. Shit, that accident may be the reason I have some of these wild blogs in the first place. But today was a very humbling experience, left the rest of my day very somber. In fact the first thing I did when I stopped home to see the family was hug them and tell them I loved them. I even went up to each pet and gave them their fair share, lucky bastards. It's sad that it would take something like that for us to act loving at all times, but it's unfortunately true. Think of how many of us take for granted the little things- the love of family most importantly- the "affection" of friends, the caring of others, it goes unnoticed and underappreciated too damn much. I can't sit here and say I am going to appreciate every moment of my life, but there are little things we can each do to try and make those who deserve it, realize they are worth a little extra effort, or a little extra appreciation. I'm sorry I don't have anything funny to say, I tried to keep the rest of my day pretty upbeat, I would hate to drag anyone down with me. But there are serious things that none of us ever think about, that should always be in the back of our heads. Death is one. It can come so easily, without warning, just like this unfortunate young lady. I guess my main point, is watch what you do, and which people you hurt, because you never know when there may not be a chance to come back on it all. I am not a religious person but I pray she went peacefully and is in a better place- because you know there are a hundred and fifty things, she would have changed, if she knew she were going to die that night.
posted by official dynasty at
9:31 PM
6 Comments:
DANE!!! You need a hug! ...I need a hug! Very thoughtful blog. What about those patients I see in the hospital (like today) that survive but never come out a coma and are 18 years old... had everything, like that girl, ahead of them: college, star basketball player, future family, loving mother... and now are bound to a bed, wheelchair, drool, and some "stranger" (AKA: Mom & Dad) cleaning you & taking you to use the toilet... It's aweful & that's why I am going to be a DPT, to try and help my fair share relearn to walk and try to get them back to their original lives. Try.
Love ya & Take care,
Keely
Hey. I know that we really dont know eachother, but i took the time to read this blog and i am glad that i did. I had a very strange experience tonight and it made me think about a lot of things in my life, and sitting here reading this made the last impression i needed tonight to take care of the rhings i need to. Thank you for sending this to me. It is a really good thing to know that someone else is thinking tonight right along with me. Ashley
I've never read your blog before, somehow i came across it. It moved me, not because it was the first time i hear something like that or that i experience something like that. It's just that sometimes we need things like that to help us make better choices.
Thank you for helping me, thank you for sharing
Well I wasn't in a car accident, but...I almost killed myself when I passed out drunk while cooking pasta and started a fire, while I lay unconscious not waking up to the fire alarm. The firemen had to break down my door and carry me out. I started crying when I woke up because I couldnt' believe how stupid I was and that I almost died and wouldn't even have been awake to realize it. You're right,life is precious, we must try to be more careful and appreciate things while we are alive because ANYTHING can happen at any time.
Nice colors. Keep up the good work. thnx!
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What a great site, how do you build such a cool site, its excellent.
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