TheBanyanTree: I got his!!

[Janice Money]

Yes.  It is a great story.  And nicely told.  Thanks.

Janice

-----Original Message-----
From: TheBanyanTree [mailto:thebanyantree-bounces at lists.remsset.com] On Behalf Of Dave
Sent: Saturday, 28 November 2015 12:23 PM
To: A comfortable place to meet other people and exchange your own *original* writings.
Subject: Re: TheBanyanTree: I got his!!

Thanks Jeri.
On Nov 27, 2015 8:23 PM, "Jeri Xiques" <jer.xiques at gmail.com> wrote:

> Great story, Dave!  Thanks for posting.
>
> Jeri
>
> On Fri, Nov 27, 2015 at 4:36 PM, David <dseaman77 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Spin, “I got this”, cornfield.
> >
> > A Kia Soul is basically a box with wheels directly under the 
> > occupants of the car. Hitting a pile of snow at 65 mph in one of 
> > these vehicles has a very predictable outcome. Why there was a pile 
> > of snow on route 12 two miles out of Kankakee Illinois, when the 
> > rest of the Illinois highways
> were
> > clear, is something the snowplow driver would have to answer. It was 
> > his pile. He did leave it for us.
> >
> > I’ve lived my entire life in the northern half of the temperate 
> > deciduous forests and grew up driving in the snow. My father grew up 
> > driving in the snow. His father grew up driving in the snow. My snow 
> > driving expertise
> is
> > my heritage. Only I wasn’t driving.
> >
> > Spin, “I got this”, cornfield.
> >
> > Alyssa was driving. I was tired of driving so Alyssa was driving. 
> > Alyssa is a 23 year old hippie who has limited experienced driving in the snow.
> > But, there was no snow, not on the roads, so I felt safe. So did the
> hippie
> > girl more than thirty years my junior.
> >
> > I am a nontraditional student at a community college over run by 
> > twenty something females and at the ripe old age of 53 have somehow 
> > acquired a vast army of twenty something female friends. The college 
> > offers jobs, classes, projects, and clubs to interact with other 
> > students. Over the years this army multiplied into a force to be 
> > reckoned with. My Facebook feed looks like a constant music festival 
> > is taking place. But Alyssa is the only hippie. Maybe the only 
> > hippie in Illinois. Maybe the last hippie in the world.
> >
> > Spin, “I got this”, cornfield.
> >
> > The inevitable outcome of the Kia Soul hitting a pile of snow at 65 
> > mph would be the flip. The roll. A top heavy box somehow going end 
> > over end hopefully coming to rest on what would be left of the 
> > tires. This was the direction we were heading. First the shock of 
> > the snow pile. Then the
> spin.
> > The Kia turned 180 degrees, and at that point Alyssa decided she 
> > wasn’t ready for the next 180, grabbed the wheel, and shouted, “I 
> > got this!”, gaining enough control enough to guide the Kia into the 
> > adjoining
> cornfield.
> >
> > This caught the attention of the snowplow driver, who, probably 
> > feeling responsible, came to our aid, explaining it was possible to 
> > push the car out of the cornfield to the side road that ran 
> > perpendicular to the
> highway.
> >
> > “I’m sorry. You look sturdy enough to do such a thing. I’ve spent 
> > the
> last
> > thirty or so years abusing my body with drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, 
> > and Netflix. I’ll call a tow truck.” But he was adamant. He had won 
> > Alyssa
> over
> > and she was very persuasive. So was her friend Erica, who was asleep 
> > in
> the
> > back during all of this.
> >
> > Erica is not a hippie. She’s more like a vampire. And a thin stick 
> > figure of a girl who worked out her sudden bout of panic attacks by 
> > helping
> Alyssa
> > push the Kia across the couple hundred yards of snow covered 
> > cornfield to the side road. I helped in the limited fashion my sad 
> > state of a physical body would allow. In the end none of us could 
> > speak through the coughing and spitting.
> >
> > Dear Alyssa,
> >
> > Navigating my piece of shit Kia out of a 360 spin without flipping 
> > it, landing upright in a cornfield with no damage, and no one hurt, 
> > was
> nothing
> > less than extraordinary. If I’m ever lucky enough to hear you 
> > announce
> that
> > you’ve “got” something in the future, I’ll know to be ready to 
> > experience greatness.
> >
> > Thank you,
> >
> > Dave
> >
> >
>