Rainy Days a Comin'

Here I am with another day of no appointments. (Mon) I can get used to this. It's like being retired or something.

However, the weather is supposed to be very bad here tomorrow and I have to take Rick for an eye exam. I wish to cancel but have no other dates to move it to so I have to suck it up.

I had a car accident in Northern VA on a rainy slippery evening. 

It was blinding rain. I turned off a side street onto Chain Branch Road at 5:30pm. 

It was bumper to bumper cars in the afternoon commute.

It was winter, it was dark and the glare of this major road was crazy. 

I sat at this corner forever before I could turn onto it. It was all clear.

I turned left onto the lane and as soon as I did two people in front of me slammed on the brakes. Making the woman in front of me crash into her car. I had my foot almost on the pavement like Fred Flinstone attempting to stop but I couldn't stop fast enough. I wasn't even going 35 mph yet, but I hit her and the man behind me hit me, and on it went.  

I was sucker punched by my airbag. I did not have my seat belt on. 

So my fault. I hate how they cut across my neck because I'm short so I did not wear it that night. Stupid, stupid, stupid. If I had I would not have been hurt. 

When I was rear-ended I was jerked forward and now my face was on the steering wheel when the airbag opened. I was hit smack dab in the face with a force like I have never felt. 

Now my eyes INSTANTLY shut. I could not see a thing. I was freaking out. 

I was alone. Rick was waiting for me to return from a hair appointment and was making us dinner. I tried to feel around the front seat and floor for my purse and phone. 

It was a flip phone to give you an idea of how long ago this was. 

Finally, a medic/EMT came to my window and helped me. He saw that my eyes were swollen shut and just put me in an ambulance. I recall how kind he was and held my hand and guided me where to walk. I begged for them to get my purse. 

They found it and put it on my belly in the ambulance.

The ride to the hospital was horrific. I heard them say to take this route on their dispatch radio. 'Fairfax was full, go to the Reston Hospital.'

The woman driving said she didn't know how to get to that hospital. I was in the back, unable to see, but feeling okay, telling her which road, which exit, etc. How crazy is that? 

When I got to the hospital I was taken into a room where they secured a brace around my neck and I could feel an exam being done. They asked me to take off my sweater and I was happy to with their help because if they had cut it I'd have lost it. It was new and it was cashmere.  I am shallow even in those types of situations I learned. Not a pretty trait. 

But as I whine typing this, it was the first time I wore it!

I am literally blinded and can see nothing, my eyes are completely swollen shut. 

I could only imagine what I looked like. My nose was bleeding as well as a cut on my face. I had braces at the time (yes in my 40s) and I kept saying I had blood in my mouth, I could taste it, are my braces okay? I'm certain they thought that should be the least of my concerns. 

The EMT lifted my lips like they do a horse to view the braces etc and that made me chuckle. He asked if I was okay. I said it just struck me funny how you are moving my mouth like you would a dog or a horse. I know nothing is funny right now, I'm sorry. 

He laughed and said he understood, sometimes humor is good in these situations.

 I don't know about that but it defused the moment for me. 

 I asked if I could have my phone to call my husband. They gave me a room wall phone and they dialed him. They held the phone to my ear. I said, "Rick I need you to know I AM FINE, but there was a pile-up car accident and they have me at the Reston Town Hospital..."  

He didn't let me finish. He was out the door and when he arrived they told him they took me into the back to work on and put him in a room that my things were in. What a terrible way to say that to him. 

When he walked into the room he just saw massive amounts of blood and bloody sheets and towels on the floor. He was freaked out. He told me later, that they said they took you into the back to work on you, what did that mean? Surgery? What is going on?  

He went to find someone who could help him and calm him down. He was told I just having X-rays. Whew!  They explained what the airbag did to my face. The male nurse said it looks like I went a round or 2 with Mike Tyson. He wanted him to be prepared.

When I was wheeled back into the room Rick was waiting and I heard him say,
"Margaret I'm here."  He grabbed my hand since I couldn't see him. 

They let me go home with him and we learned where my car had been taken to retrieve the next day.

So that is why I hate driving in the rain. 

I'd rather drive in a snowstorm than rain.

Snow doesn't scare me. 

Rain on the other hand makes me want to stay home.

Ever since this accident, it has made me so paranoid to drive in the rain, but I have to do it.  Oh, it's fine if it's a little rain but not monsoon rain as they are predicting. It's a 100% chance of rain tomorrow with high winds. 

If it was snow I could call them and say, "I can't make it in" and they would understand. But with rain, I know I look and am a wuss so I can't do that.  

Rick said, "Hey I'll drive"  

I looked at him and said, "Oh yeah, that will make me calmer"  

We had a good laugh about that one.

UPDATE--Schools are closed for tomorrow's (Tues) rain storm. Looks like others are chicken like me.