Two out of Three Ain't Bad

I prayed for a peaceful trip; a safe and uneventful trip. I don't drive outside of our small town much, and I should probably be embarrassed to admit it, but I get stressed driving outside of the familiar. I'm not easily embarrassed anymore, so I can tell you freely that I pray pretty seriously before trips outside of my "city" limits. Thursday night, the kids and I were on our way to S-town to celebrate a surprise birthday party for my mom. Everything was falling into place perfectly and we were scheduled to be there half an hour early. Fifteen minutes short of my destination, I met this in the road:

At first glance, it looked like a stick. I explored my options. Take the stick, which was quickly looking more and more intimidating as I drew closer, or take the semi beside me.

Given my plethora of options, it was hard to decide, but I eventually came to settle on window #1, though it was now obvious that it was NOT a stick.

Quick math equation for you:

THIS:

PLUS THIS:

















EQUALS THIS:



















Or, more accurately, 3 of those. Three flat tires. Pop! Instantly. What I didn't see, but witnesses told me later, was that just prior to my encountering it, a trailer axle fell out of the back of a truck. The driver of the truck pulled over, ran back and grabbed the axle out of the road (just after I hit it,) and tossed it into the back of his truck before driving away in a hurry. Thankfully, someone else came to my rescue. The knight-in-shining-armour, by the name of Doug, let me run up minutes on his cell phone. He also contacted a tow truck and the police. He waited until the tow truck arrived and even made sure I had plenty of money to see me home safely. I couldn't have met kinder people. The repair shop was only a mile from where the accident occurred. They had cards and games for us to play while we waited and they charged me a minimal amount.

The damage was also minimal. The axle burst three tires and busted through a wheel. We could have flipped. We could have been thrust into a swerve toward the semi. We could have been stranded on the highway and had to walk. Instead, we had a peaceful and safe evening.

Uneventful, not so much.

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