Window Crashers

Did I ever mention the lady who drove her car through the front of my mom's shop the day before Thanksgiving?

Well, I am now. The story goes just about like that. She hit the gas instead of the break and blasted right on through. Quite a shock, to say the least, but no one was hurt.

Alex and I were actually in town and on our way to her shop when it happened. There's the possibility I would have literally strangled someone had I driven up to see the disasterous scene and find that my mom was seriously injured. Thankfully, she wasn't, so it didn't come to that.

Anyway, it was a dreadful ordeal ... took forever to fix and with it being the day before Thanksgiving ... I don't know ... it just was a huge mess and hassle for my mom to deal with.

The craziest part, to me, is that the lady actually came back later that day to pick up her pants that my mom had altered. This was, of course, after she had been checked at the hospital and released. I shit you not. She really wanted her dang pants!

You would not see even a glimmer of me anywhere near that shopping center for the rest of my life if I had demolished a portion of the building like that for something as silly as hitting the gas instead of the break.

Anyhow ... the point is ... it happened AGAIN! Not to my mom's shop, thank goodness, but to the shop four doors down from hers, in the same shopping center! Are you kidding?! 5 months apart!

This time, it was a much, much older man. I guess the situation was similar, though. He might have gotten confused when leaving and put his car in drive instead of reverse. Either way, he managed to wedge his WHOLE car into the lobby of the balloon store down the way.

This affirms two things in my mind ... 1. the building's managers and owners should be forced to put cement those nifty partition things (very technical term) at the curb to deflect these cars (but are probably either too lazy or too cheap) ... and 2. as we get older (and I do mean ALL of us at about 75 and above), we should be taking regular, mandatory driving and eye exams before our licenses are renewed.

This has nothing to do with ageism. When I think of that little old man sitting in his car, confused as hell about how he ended up parked inside a storefront, it makes me want to cry a little. So, no, I have nothing against the older generations. I'm all for public transportation in the form of free/super-cheap taxi services or whatever for the elderly who do not pass these tests ... as long as they are not the actual drivers!

I'm simply talking about pure reality. Some of my favorite people on Planet Earth have been/are over 80 years old. One is 60 years my senior and more spry than I am! She can drive ... maybe better than me ... so I say, let her! But, you know ... not all have the presence of mind and body as the years progress to perform such tasks. I still love them dearly, but do I think some of them should still be allowed behind the wheel? Absolutely not.

That's all I'm saying.