this has got to stop.
aside from the fact that i deal with complaining, excuses, whimpering, whining, and reasons all week while in the field, i have started to do it to my friends. anytime i talk with friends, i talk about work and how annoyed / angry / frustrated i am with my co-workers. this must stop. my friends probably can't take much more of it. though they do seem to find it amusing. i can see how it would be amusing to someone that didn't have to live it. in fact, when i tell it, sometimes i'm even amused and think, wow, how can someone put up with so much silly stuff every week, and still feel like they're accomplishing work?
anyway, new resolution. no more talking about work to friends. instead, i'll ask them how their day went. it's got to be better than mine. i'll keep my complaining for my journal. it doesn't seem to mind how much i whimper and whine about things.
happy weekend! i look forward to dancing, corvallis fall festival, visiting with friends, and some serious relaxing. and hopefully, showing off my outstanding arm bruise :)
peace, love and turtles...
25 September 2009
21 September 2009
cyclist gets hit by a car...door.
today was not the greatest of days, but there are plenty of reasons to be thankful.
i tried to leave for work around noon, and when i got to the top of my driveway realized i had a flat front tire. back down to the house to pump it up.
had a smooth ride downtown to the library where i made a copy of my license for some bank documents, and returned a book on tape i had borrowed and paid my $0.65 fine for returning it late.
biked to chipotle to get a burrito bowl for lunch. they're so tasty and it's 1.5 meals for me. got a drink. decided to go toward work to eat under a tree. opened my wallet to put my credit card away and realized i'd left my license at the library in the copy machine. went out to my bike and realized my cup was going to fall out of the bike water bottle holder. used a bungee cord to strap it in. the top popped off as i biked across the street and beverage started spilling. biked down the hill holding the beverage cup safely, with no more spillage. at this point i also realize how hot it is outside. and i'm worried about my license.
got to the library, just as a man was going to use the copy machine. he opened the top, found my license, looked at it as i came careening across the room saying, "hi, that's mine!" and he gave it to me and smiled and i went back outside. at this point i was sweating profusely and starving, so i went across the street to central park to eat my lunch in the shade. at this point i realized that my burrito bowl had leaked onto my, of course, white long sleeve shirt, and had left some salsa stains on the arm. guess i'd clean it when i got to work.
a strange speaking man with dark skin came and i think asked me how i was doing. i said "fine, thank you." and continued eating my lunch. then i think he asked me if he could sit here, and i thought, well, i didn't want him sitting with me, i was trying to cool off and get to work and didn't really feel in the mood for small talk with a stranger. but it is a free country and there are no limits about where people can sit, so i said, "sure, you can sit anywhere you like." thankfully he sat one tree away from me, and set up a blanket since i guess he was going to take a nap.
when i was done eating, i packed up the rest of my lunch, put it into a plastic bag i found in my backpack, and headed back up monroe st. toward campus. i'm feeling calmer about the fact that i got my license back, i paid my fine, i made my copy, i ate my lunch in the shade (it's hot out there!), and managed to repackage my lunch in a way that would not spill anymore in my backpack.
i'm cruising up monroe, past clodfelters, mcmenamin's, jamba juice, and shortly thereafter, WHAM! a woman opens her car door at the exact moment i'm biking past. i ram into the door, yell "ugh!", fall off my bike into the street. realize, holy crap i'm in the street, jump up, and pick up my bike, get out of the middle of the street. no cars coming. the girl gets out of her car and says, "oh my god, are you ok? i'm so sorry! i'm not used to bikes on the road!" i look at myself and realize no blood seems to be gushing out of anywhere and i'm in no particular amount of pain. i'm shaken, and shaky, but i'm not bleeding. the seat on my bike is tweeked sideways, and the chain is off, but otherwise, things seem fine. i say, "i'm fine. did i mess up your car door?" she says, "oh my god, no, you didn't, don't worry about that, are YOU ok?" and i think, and then say, "yeah, i'm fine, thanks." i don't know what happened to the girl after that, i kind of stopped paying attention to her.
the whole thing was a blur. i was biking, i saw the door opening at the split second it was too late for me to turn or stop or do anything. i just hit it because there was nowhere else to go. i was keenly aware of the sounds around me, and somewhere in my senses knew there wasn't a car next to me, but wasn't sure if there was one coming up behind me. i'm so glad there wasn't. but it happened so incredibly lightning fast. i guess that is how most accidents happen.
i move my bike off to the side of the road between the road and sidewalk. i put the chain back on, readjust the seat, and then think, "wow, i'm so, SO lucky no cars were coming!" i then check my mouth and don't feel any teeth missing or taste any blood. i look at my hands and there's no blood or scrapes. my left elbow feels weird and i look and there's a bit of a scrape there. a little one, nothing big or gushing. my right bicep, however, has a larger bruise/scrape (but no blood) and that is the sorest thing on me. i am thankful i was wearing a helmet. and i am thankful i played rugby and learned how to fall. my legs are nearly free of any damage from the incident. in fact, i think i landed completely on my left side: ankles, knees, hips, shoulders. the only thing that was uncovered was my elbow, which got the scrape.
anyway, biked over to the MU and went to the bathroom to wash my elbow, and began thinking about the magnitude of luck i had just encountered.
i was hit only by a stationary vehicle
i was not RUN over by a moving vehicle
i didn't get a concussion
i hardly got injured
no ambulance was necessary, nor name exchange
my bike hardly got injured
the girl's car was uninjured
my pride only got injured a little bit
when i got to work, i borrowed an ice pack from the ladies in the office, where one of them told me about her incident with a parked car door opening into the bike lane. she maimed the door pretty bad, and ambulances were called and there was hospitals and doctors involved.
my arms are tender, and there's a sore spot on my left knee, but i feel very fortunate, despite this crazy, crazy incident.
thanks be to god, or whomever is looking over me!
i tried to leave for work around noon, and when i got to the top of my driveway realized i had a flat front tire. back down to the house to pump it up.
had a smooth ride downtown to the library where i made a copy of my license for some bank documents, and returned a book on tape i had borrowed and paid my $0.65 fine for returning it late.
biked to chipotle to get a burrito bowl for lunch. they're so tasty and it's 1.5 meals for me. got a drink. decided to go toward work to eat under a tree. opened my wallet to put my credit card away and realized i'd left my license at the library in the copy machine. went out to my bike and realized my cup was going to fall out of the bike water bottle holder. used a bungee cord to strap it in. the top popped off as i biked across the street and beverage started spilling. biked down the hill holding the beverage cup safely, with no more spillage. at this point i also realize how hot it is outside. and i'm worried about my license.
got to the library, just as a man was going to use the copy machine. he opened the top, found my license, looked at it as i came careening across the room saying, "hi, that's mine!" and he gave it to me and smiled and i went back outside. at this point i was sweating profusely and starving, so i went across the street to central park to eat my lunch in the shade. at this point i realized that my burrito bowl had leaked onto my, of course, white long sleeve shirt, and had left some salsa stains on the arm. guess i'd clean it when i got to work.
a strange speaking man with dark skin came and i think asked me how i was doing. i said "fine, thank you." and continued eating my lunch. then i think he asked me if he could sit here, and i thought, well, i didn't want him sitting with me, i was trying to cool off and get to work and didn't really feel in the mood for small talk with a stranger. but it is a free country and there are no limits about where people can sit, so i said, "sure, you can sit anywhere you like." thankfully he sat one tree away from me, and set up a blanket since i guess he was going to take a nap.
when i was done eating, i packed up the rest of my lunch, put it into a plastic bag i found in my backpack, and headed back up monroe st. toward campus. i'm feeling calmer about the fact that i got my license back, i paid my fine, i made my copy, i ate my lunch in the shade (it's hot out there!), and managed to repackage my lunch in a way that would not spill anymore in my backpack.
i'm cruising up monroe, past clodfelters, mcmenamin's, jamba juice, and shortly thereafter, WHAM! a woman opens her car door at the exact moment i'm biking past. i ram into the door, yell "ugh!", fall off my bike into the street. realize, holy crap i'm in the street, jump up, and pick up my bike, get out of the middle of the street. no cars coming. the girl gets out of her car and says, "oh my god, are you ok? i'm so sorry! i'm not used to bikes on the road!" i look at myself and realize no blood seems to be gushing out of anywhere and i'm in no particular amount of pain. i'm shaken, and shaky, but i'm not bleeding. the seat on my bike is tweeked sideways, and the chain is off, but otherwise, things seem fine. i say, "i'm fine. did i mess up your car door?" she says, "oh my god, no, you didn't, don't worry about that, are YOU ok?" and i think, and then say, "yeah, i'm fine, thanks." i don't know what happened to the girl after that, i kind of stopped paying attention to her.
the whole thing was a blur. i was biking, i saw the door opening at the split second it was too late for me to turn or stop or do anything. i just hit it because there was nowhere else to go. i was keenly aware of the sounds around me, and somewhere in my senses knew there wasn't a car next to me, but wasn't sure if there was one coming up behind me. i'm so glad there wasn't. but it happened so incredibly lightning fast. i guess that is how most accidents happen.
i move my bike off to the side of the road between the road and sidewalk. i put the chain back on, readjust the seat, and then think, "wow, i'm so, SO lucky no cars were coming!" i then check my mouth and don't feel any teeth missing or taste any blood. i look at my hands and there's no blood or scrapes. my left elbow feels weird and i look and there's a bit of a scrape there. a little one, nothing big or gushing. my right bicep, however, has a larger bruise/scrape (but no blood) and that is the sorest thing on me. i am thankful i was wearing a helmet. and i am thankful i played rugby and learned how to fall. my legs are nearly free of any damage from the incident. in fact, i think i landed completely on my left side: ankles, knees, hips, shoulders. the only thing that was uncovered was my elbow, which got the scrape.
anyway, biked over to the MU and went to the bathroom to wash my elbow, and began thinking about the magnitude of luck i had just encountered.
i was hit only by a stationary vehicle
i was not RUN over by a moving vehicle
i didn't get a concussion
i hardly got injured
no ambulance was necessary, nor name exchange
my bike hardly got injured
the girl's car was uninjured
my pride only got injured a little bit
when i got to work, i borrowed an ice pack from the ladies in the office, where one of them told me about her incident with a parked car door opening into the bike lane. she maimed the door pretty bad, and ambulances were called and there was hospitals and doctors involved.
my arms are tender, and there's a sore spot on my left knee, but i feel very fortunate, despite this crazy, crazy incident.
thanks be to god, or whomever is looking over me!
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