On 3/20/06, Shel Belinkoff <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I was slowly driving to a friend's house up in the Berkeley Hills. A > woman, seemingly impaired in some way, drove into my lane and crashed > head-on into me. She wasn't wearing her seat belt, and was driven to the > hospital by an ambulance. She's badly bruised as her head went into the > windshield. > > The medics looked me over, checked pulse and blood pressure (both were > highly elevated), checked my reflexes and coordination, and felt that I was > OK, but offered to take me to the hospital just in case. I declined. > > A friend drove up to meet me to give me a ride down to his house, where we > had dinner, and after which I came home. I felt good enough to walk at a > brisk pace to his car, which was at the end of the street. The street was > closed to through traffic for a while. I may be a little sore around my > shoulders tomorrow. I was wearing my seatbelt and shoulder harness. I can > still feel where the shoulder harness pressed against my chest as it held > me securely. > > Always wear your seatbelt. You will never know where or when an accident > can happen - it can even happen on a peaceful, sunny, Sunday afternoon, on > a quiet street. Be careful out there ...
Thank the gods that you're okay, Shel. I agree with you 100% on the seatbelt issue. It doesn't take an very hard impact to propel one's head into the windshield and cause serious damage. While we're on a safety crusade, let me throw in that you cyclists out there should always wear your helmets. Last autumn, when I got hit by a car and broke my collarbone, my head hit the ground right after my shoulder. I ended up with a stiff neck, but not even a headache. My helmet certainly saved me from a concussion, and possibly worse. I feel badly for the lady involved in your collision who was not wearing her seatbelt. That simple piece of safety technology might have saved her a great deal of pain and suffering. I'm glad to hear that you're smart enough to wear yours. You're right, a sore shoulder/chest is a small price to pay for an intact noggin. Glad you hear you're mostly okay - sounds like it could have been much much worse. cheers, frank -- "Sharpness is a bourgeois concept." -Henri Cartier-Bresson
