Has Not Fascinated

I had a mission to go pick my cousin up from the stadium after the Florida State vs Florida game, but it just so happened entry to the stadium was being redirected all over the city by the police. Weaving in and around the back streets, I had my first collision in my new vehicle (it has less than 3,000 miles on it, really).

A pack of us were heading through an intersection being directed by an officer, when the front vehicle decides to slam on it’s brakes starting a chain reaction. I just barely tapped the large truck in front of me, but in a heartbeat I felt a good impact from behind.

We pulled off into a lot, no officers gave any notice, and we tried to make sense of what we should do. I exchanged emails with the woman who ran into me, and the large truck left since there was no damage. The damage was questionable in the dark; my car looked pretty busted on the front and rear, but I didn’t want to report something under $1000 to fix.

More than anything, I just wanted to get the hell out of there before more officers showed up, but it was too late. An officer pulled up, we gave him our licenses and info, and shortly after waiting he came back with some paperwork and an infraction slip for this woman. I was somewhat irritated because I had mentioned that we had sorted things out and were just about to leave the scene, but he insisted.

This poor woman was merely trying to pick up her daughter from the laundry mat, and receiving this ticket which would put 4 points on her license, one of which is irremovable, almost brought her to tears. She tried to barter with the officer, and I was trying to help her understand that they have to call it “something” when they write up an infraction like this.

A few moments passed, and I mentioned to the officer that I wasn’t going to report this to my insurance company, and that I was likely going to pay for the repairs out of pocket. Hearing this, he said I could have him disregard the ticket, delete it as if nothing happened. I said I would greatly appreciate that if possible, as it would keep this woman from getting points on her license and potentially putting her job in jeopardy (she’s a driver for a living).

We ripped up the ticket, and she became so lifted. She gave me a hug… it hug felt really good coming from someone who suddenly had a little light in this small, but unfortunate situation.

Luckily, nobody was injured and the damages to my vehicle were minimal. It will cost some money to fix the body, but I might leave it for the time being. The body now has it’s imperfections, it’s battle scars, and perhaps that’s something I can identify with.

(via ichasemyshadow)