Adrenaline Rush

I was on a decent long run this morning and was contemplating what I would write.  I thought about writing how this run, while not my best by far, was mentally easier.  How I didn't have such thoughts of loathing like I've had in the past.  I thought about writing about Hans and how he's training for a 5k along with my mom, and how proud I am of both of them.  I thought about just doing a generic Independence Day post and talking about how excited I am for grilled hot dogs and hamburgers, and how happy I am I decided to close the kennel for the day (best decision EVER).

But then, right before I reached home, right as I was finishing my cool down and looking forward to stretching and getting in the shower, something happened to erase all those thoughts from my mind.  I suddenly knew exactly what I would write about, and it certainly wouldn't be hotdogs and hamburgers.  Today, I was almost hit by a car.

Let me start off by saying that I'm a VERY alert runner.  I don't run with headphones (not even in a race with closed roads).  I wear bright clothing and reflective gear / lights at night.  I'm always aware of my surroundings and I always do a full check of an intersection before crossing.  I've seen too many runners do something stupid to not be safe myself.  It's probably because of my alertness that things turned out the way they did.

I was finishing up a 5 mile run (for those of you who know what my mileage was supposed to be, keep your mouth shut), and I was just walking past the neighbor's house.  I was daydreaming about a lovely shower to wash the salt and sweat off me, and I couldn't wait to get home.  I looked across the street to see if our other neighbors were out and about, and I noticed a white car driving the other direction.  The problem was, the car was only half in it's lane.  It was drifting over rapidly into oncoming traffic.  My first thought was, "Huh.  I hope she goes back soon."  Then came a barrage of very rapid thoughts.  "She's not going back over.  Is there another car coming?  Go back over lady!  Crap!  She's not even slowing down.  What is she doing?!  Crap!  Crap!  Crap!  RUN!"  It was at that moment that I realized she was coming over fast, she wasn't stopping, and she had a very real possibility of jumping the curb and hitting me.  I very quickly resumed my run at full speed and tried to get out of the way.

The car did not hit me.  It did, however, hit the car I was walking next to.  It jumped the curb first and then plowed head on into our neighbor's parked car.

My first thought was, "I'm alive!  Thank God!"  And then I realized there were people in the car, and I had to make sure they were fine.  The drive was awake and conscious, and there was a little girl in the backseat.  The girl was fine but was very shaken up and was screaming.  She got out of the car wearing only one shoe (the other one came off in the crash) and immediately walked up to me for a hug.  I stayed with her and got her to sit on the neighbor's steps until the neighbors came out and called 911.  Everyone was fine.  I think the grandmother did end up going to the hospital as a precautionary measure.  The girl's mom was only 3 minutes away, so we called her, and she quickly came.  I called Hans to tell him what had happened.

So, I had a bit of an adrenaline rush today.  I learned that, even when my legs are exhausted, I have a lot left in them.  I also learned I'm almost useless without my cell phone, because I had no idea what to do when I couldn't just dial 911.  Luckily, the crash made some noise and people came out quickly.

What a rush!