Thursday, June 12, 2008
(Saving a) Life Lessons
There's a lot going on around here at Random Manor worth reporting, but this news story vaulted to the top of the list:
A 27-year-old Houston man died early today after his pickup truck slammed so hard into a Katy Freeway overpass railing that he was ejected through the closed driver's window and fell about 40 feet to the ground, police said.
The accident occurred at 2:10 a.m. and the driver, whose name was not released, died at the scene.
Police said the man was not wearing his seat belt when the crash occurred.
Witnesses told accident investigators the man was westbound on Interstate 10 and seemed to be trying to exit at Antoine when he lost control of the 2001 Chevrolet quad-cab truck and it spun into the railing.
Investigators said they found crack cocaine in the pickup.
The Random Kids are at an age where we as parents are making that transition from benevolent dictators to trusted advisors. So while I'm sure there is a lot of pain and sorrow behind this sad ending, I will confess to being glad so many "teachable moments" are in there as well.
Back when I was probably 14 or 15, a cousin of mine broke his leg in a mishap that occurred rather late one Friday night. A day or two later, as the dinner dishes were being cleared away, I said something to the effect of, "That was sure crummy luck," to my father. Rather than the distracted "Mmmm-hmmm" of assent I was expecting, he put down his newspaper, fixed me with a serious stare, and said, "Random Son, I think you will find that luck tends to degrade rather dramatically after midnight. Tell me, what good things do you suppose might have been likely to happen to him at that hour?"
As I had been more or less perennially lobbying for increased laxity around my parents' draconian curfew policies1, I stammered a bit, looked around for help, and settled for, "Uh, I don't know?"
He returned to his paper. "Exactly."
2:10 AM.
Not wearing his seatbelt.
Drugs in the car.
Mark Twain had it right. My father was an idiot at 14, but looked pretty darn smart at 21.
And twenty-five years later, the man is a freaking genius.
Happy Father's Day, Dad.
1 A memorable highlight: one evening, my father looked at his watch in response to my "Is it OK if I go to the Random High School Kids' Semi-Cool Hangout Establishment?" query and said, "It's 9:45 now, so... sure, just be back by 10:30."
A 27-year-old Houston man died early today after his pickup truck slammed so hard into a Katy Freeway overpass railing that he was ejected through the closed driver's window and fell about 40 feet to the ground, police said.
The accident occurred at 2:10 a.m. and the driver, whose name was not released, died at the scene.
Police said the man was not wearing his seat belt when the crash occurred.
Witnesses told accident investigators the man was westbound on Interstate 10 and seemed to be trying to exit at Antoine when he lost control of the 2001 Chevrolet quad-cab truck and it spun into the railing.
Investigators said they found crack cocaine in the pickup.
The Random Kids are at an age where we as parents are making that transition from benevolent dictators to trusted advisors. So while I'm sure there is a lot of pain and sorrow behind this sad ending, I will confess to being glad so many "teachable moments" are in there as well.
Back when I was probably 14 or 15, a cousin of mine broke his leg in a mishap that occurred rather late one Friday night. A day or two later, as the dinner dishes were being cleared away, I said something to the effect of, "That was sure crummy luck," to my father. Rather than the distracted "Mmmm-hmmm" of assent I was expecting, he put down his newspaper, fixed me with a serious stare, and said, "Random Son, I think you will find that luck tends to degrade rather dramatically after midnight. Tell me, what good things do you suppose might have been likely to happen to him at that hour?"
As I had been more or less perennially lobbying for increased laxity around my parents' draconian curfew policies1, I stammered a bit, looked around for help, and settled for, "Uh, I don't know?"
He returned to his paper. "Exactly."
2:10 AM.
Not wearing his seatbelt.
Drugs in the car.
Mark Twain had it right. My father was an idiot at 14, but looked pretty darn smart at 21.
And twenty-five years later, the man is a freaking genius.
Happy Father's Day, Dad.
1 A memorable highlight: one evening, my father looked at his watch in response to my "Is it OK if I go to the Random High School Kids' Semi-Cool Hangout Establishment?" query and said, "It's 9:45 now, so... sure, just be back by 10:30."
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