Things truly can change in the blink of an eye...and sometimes that blink feels like it take minutes from start to finish.
Tuesday morning was a beautiful morning, sunny and warm in Minnesota. After I dropped the kids off at daycare and school, I headed into my normal commute into work. I was pleasantly surprised at how freely traffic was flowing...until it wasn't. I was about 3 minutes away from work, when traffic came to a sudden stop on the interstate. I stopped, and automatically checked the rear view mirror to make sure the car behind me was going to, as well. The SUV was about 4 car lengths behind, so I assumed it wouldn't be an issue. I checked again just a moment later, and saw the grill of the car 2 feet away from my car, and not slowing down. I shut my eyes and screamed "NO!"
And then I got hit. My car was pushed into the vehicle in front of me, and then I bounced back and hit the rear vehicle. I was a little pinball being tossed around between the two other vehicles. It then stopped and I opened my eyes. The first thing I saw was a man in a black truck, 1 lane over, looking at me, giving me a thumbs up to make sure I was ok. I nodded my head and he moved on. The next thing I noticed was that there was a MNDoT plow truck about 100 feet behind me, and he had put his plow down to block traffic so no one could get into our lane. Bless him.
My amazing car called BMW Emergency Services, and transmitted my exact location, along with the status of my car. A very kind woman at BMW asked me questions, and called State Patrol to come to the scene. She stayed on the line with me until State Patrol arrived.
It took about an hour to get all of the details exchanged, tow trucks on scene, etc. In an accident, the BMW cuts power to the car, so there's not a chance for sparks to create a fire...but it uses an alternate source to allow communications to happen (like calling BMW, and connecting to the Bluetooth on my phone.) AMAZING. With this, though, it means I couldn't put my car into neutral to be pushed out of the scene (my car wouldn't start) so the State Patrol had to push my vehicle out, with the car in park. The trooper's vehicle was struggling to do so...both cars were shaking with the effort.
My tow truck driver encouraged me to get checked out, and when Scott came to pick me up at the tow yard, we cleaned out my car, and headed right to Urgent Care. I passed their tests and was told I'd be very sore and stiff for the next days. I have been finding weird bruising as the days have passed, but they are starting to turn green, so I know it's healing.
Scott and I went out to lunch, went to pick up new car seats for Ava and G, and then attempted to track down a rental car for me. We found one close to home, and close to where my car currently is. My car has been determined to be a total loss, so we need to add car shopping to the list of things that we don't have time for. I'm very saddened by this, as I hadn't even had the car for a year, and I loved it. It was my perfect car, and it took me months to find it. Now I don't have that luxury...but at least I know exactly what type of car I'll be buying next. As my friend said, "BMW for the win."
The vehicle in front me had minimal damage to their vehicle, and they were able to drive away. The vehicle behind me was totaled, and was towed away. ALL of the people involved were able to walk away, so I consider that a blessing.
The driver who hit me told State Patrol that she blacked out. My plea to everyone is that if you feel like you can't drive safely, whether it's because you're under the influence, or because you have a medical condition, DO NOT get behind the wheel. When you're in the car, keep your hands off of your phone...no texting, no searching online, nothing. Another friend of mine puts her phone in the backseat, so she doesn't have access to it. Most cars have the ability to use hands free-calling, so if a call comes in, you're able to take it safely. I pray that this will be a life lesson for the driver who hit me...
I've been very nervous to drive over the last few days and have been leaving a large gap between me and other cars. Another friend pointed out that you can generally tell when someone has been in an accident, as they drive more slowly and leave larger distances between cars. You can now lump me into that category.
Scott has been absolutely amazing during this entire ordeal. I feel incredibly lucky to have him as my husband.
On a happier note, we did enjoy a fun night out at a local restaurant where the kids got their faces/arms painted.
Last weekend, I had ordered a very special bracelet to showcase my children's DOB. The stone in the middle represents "happiness". It showed up on Thursday...and ended the week on a better note.
Scott and I are in for some long challenges ahead with the car situation, but, at least we're still a family of four. And that's what matters!
Tuesday morning was a beautiful morning, sunny and warm in Minnesota. After I dropped the kids off at daycare and school, I headed into my normal commute into work. I was pleasantly surprised at how freely traffic was flowing...until it wasn't. I was about 3 minutes away from work, when traffic came to a sudden stop on the interstate. I stopped, and automatically checked the rear view mirror to make sure the car behind me was going to, as well. The SUV was about 4 car lengths behind, so I assumed it wouldn't be an issue. I checked again just a moment later, and saw the grill of the car 2 feet away from my car, and not slowing down. I shut my eyes and screamed "NO!"
And then I got hit. My car was pushed into the vehicle in front of me, and then I bounced back and hit the rear vehicle. I was a little pinball being tossed around between the two other vehicles. It then stopped and I opened my eyes. The first thing I saw was a man in a black truck, 1 lane over, looking at me, giving me a thumbs up to make sure I was ok. I nodded my head and he moved on. The next thing I noticed was that there was a MNDoT plow truck about 100 feet behind me, and he had put his plow down to block traffic so no one could get into our lane. Bless him.
There was minimal damage to the front end of the vehicle...my air bag did not deploy, which is exactly right. This was clearly a rear collision from my standpoint.
It took about an hour to get all of the details exchanged, tow trucks on scene, etc. In an accident, the BMW cuts power to the car, so there's not a chance for sparks to create a fire...but it uses an alternate source to allow communications to happen (like calling BMW, and connecting to the Bluetooth on my phone.) AMAZING. With this, though, it means I couldn't put my car into neutral to be pushed out of the scene (my car wouldn't start) so the State Patrol had to push my vehicle out, with the car in park. The trooper's vehicle was struggling to do so...both cars were shaking with the effort.
My tow truck driver encouraged me to get checked out, and when Scott came to pick me up at the tow yard, we cleaned out my car, and headed right to Urgent Care. I passed their tests and was told I'd be very sore and stiff for the next days. I have been finding weird bruising as the days have passed, but they are starting to turn green, so I know it's healing.
Scott and I went out to lunch, went to pick up new car seats for Ava and G, and then attempted to track down a rental car for me. We found one close to home, and close to where my car currently is. My car has been determined to be a total loss, so we need to add car shopping to the list of things that we don't have time for. I'm very saddened by this, as I hadn't even had the car for a year, and I loved it. It was my perfect car, and it took me months to find it. Now I don't have that luxury...but at least I know exactly what type of car I'll be buying next. As my friend said, "BMW for the win."
The vehicle in front me had minimal damage to their vehicle, and they were able to drive away. The vehicle behind me was totaled, and was towed away. ALL of the people involved were able to walk away, so I consider that a blessing.
The driver who hit me told State Patrol that she blacked out. My plea to everyone is that if you feel like you can't drive safely, whether it's because you're under the influence, or because you have a medical condition, DO NOT get behind the wheel. When you're in the car, keep your hands off of your phone...no texting, no searching online, nothing. Another friend of mine puts her phone in the backseat, so she doesn't have access to it. Most cars have the ability to use hands free-calling, so if a call comes in, you're able to take it safely. I pray that this will be a life lesson for the driver who hit me...
I've been very nervous to drive over the last few days and have been leaving a large gap between me and other cars. Another friend pointed out that you can generally tell when someone has been in an accident, as they drive more slowly and leave larger distances between cars. You can now lump me into that category.
Scott has been absolutely amazing during this entire ordeal. I feel incredibly lucky to have him as my husband.
On a happier note, we did enjoy a fun night out at a local restaurant where the kids got their faces/arms painted.
Last weekend, I had ordered a very special bracelet to showcase my children's DOB. The stone in the middle represents "happiness". It showed up on Thursday...and ended the week on a better note.
Scott and I are in for some long challenges ahead with the car situation, but, at least we're still a family of four. And that's what matters!
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