I saw a Hypnotist yesterday and I hit a Deer today

How's that for the start of a weekend :-)

Yesterday after work I went to see the hypnotist to kick my 17 yr smoking habit. I was really excited about this. I wanted it to work. I've tried the patch, zyban, cold turkey, now it was time to try this.

I had two cigarettes on the way there. I know, I know ... all you non-smokers are going 'ewwww' and the smokers just 'get it' ;-) They understand why I finished off that one last one in the parking lot before going in. Right to the end of it. (I can see my mother shaking her head now and making that tsk tsk tsk sound .... sorry Mom!).

He took me in right away when I got there, we started right away and we were finished within half and hour. Some of it I remember, some I don't. Did it work? Who knows? Right now I'm taking it hour by hour and we're on hour 31.

Do I want one? Damn right I do. I think about it all the time. And I'm sure I wouldn't have been nominated for a 'Mother of the Year' award this morning lol. This morning was hard. I opened my eyes and remembered I was now a non-smoker. I instantly closed them again. I'm a morning smoker. I wake up, I have my coffee and smoke then start my day. This morning just wasn't going to be the same.

Turned out I had more important things to worry about than how I was going to start my day without a cigarette. When I walked into the kitchen, I headed straight for the fridge. I had put an invitation to a birthday party that Adam had received up there, so I'd have the time/date handy. For some reason, I had it in my head that this party started at 2pm. Planned that the boys and I would hit the store for a present before heading to the party.

When I got up, I had the 'check the invitation' feeling and sure enough my heart sank. It was a morning party! Start time 10am. I looked at the clock ... 9:50 .... "OK boys, let's go ... we've got a party to get to!!!!" Pit stop for a card and by the time we got there (10:20), they had just sat down to get started stuffing. It was a 'stuff a bear' party :-) It was a large group, so by the time everyone got organized and instructed, they had just started handing out the materials when we got there. PHEW!!! It was a two hour party, so in the big scheme of things, he hadn't missed much :-)

Later this afternoon, Alec had a basketball game. It finished around 5:30. We left the school parking lot, drove down the street then pulled on to a four lane busy street and drove maybe 10 seconds before we hit a deer. Yes, a deer. A big male deer. On a 'main street'.

I've been a passenger in minor car accidents. I've sat in the traffic jams caused by people in front of me getting into accidents, but I've never hit an animal or another vehicle myself personally. Until tonight.

It simply came out of nowhere. It made it across three lanes of traffic, and had just run past a police officer in an SUV when I saw it ramming into my front end. Before it's head slammed into the side of me, I had no idea what was coming. We were discussing the game. I had just said to Alec "You guys played a great... and the word 'Game' and "OMIGOD" all sort of came out as one word. Then 'THAT WAS A DEER! WE HIT A DEER!'

The deer hit, sort of went up onto the hood then bounced off and rolled in front of us. Thankfully there was nobody directly behind us because I stopped dead in my tracks, squealing the tires behind us. I checked the rear-view, and saw the police lights right away, and slowly pulled over to the side of the road.

Both boys were fine. I was fine. Everyone was wearing their seat belts. Seat belts save lives! Oh my God ... I just hit a deer!!! On the main road! Not out in the boonies somewhere! I could understand if we were closer to home, or it had come at us on the highway, but we were 30 seconds away from a major intersection, grocery store, gas stations etc etc etc. Major civilization!!! Not deer country!!!

When I'm driving home to NB, and there are Beware of Moose! signs peppered along the highway, I'm on the ready. I've traveled that road for 20yrs and I know that something can come at me at any moment, so I'm tense, and ready ... on a busy street in 'the city' ... I was not ready :-(

The police officer came up to us to make sure we were OK, as did Adam's former teacher, who also happens to be Alec's assistant basketball coach (along with her husband). She had pulled out into the outer lane to pass us, and just missed hitting the deer herself. Other than a case of mild shock, everyone was fine. Once I realized what had happened, I felt my eyes fill with tears, knew I couldn't 'lose it' in front of the kids, police or the teacher/coach lol, so took a breath ... got out of the truck and dealt with it.

It's funny what you remember in the hours after an event like this. I remember getting out of the truck, looking at what was left of the bumper and where the light was, and seeing deer hair, blood and 'stuff' in there. I didn't look at the rest of the truck, I turned around and walked over to the officer instead. He told me he had seen the whole incident, and there was nothing I could do. Which was really nice to hear coming from him!!! Said he'd need some info from me so the boys went with Alec's coach to a nearby garage and I followed behind to wait for the officer, while he shot the deer :-( I felt really bad about hitting that poor deer. So did the boys :-( Adam said to me tonight "I'm never gonna forget that Mom!" Sigh.

Ever the optimist, I asked the officer if he thought I could drive my vehicle home. He sort of chuckled and pointed out how the whole left side of the hood was smashed in, and it was leaking alot of fluid. When I got out of it at the scene, my door was not ... right... I could hardly turn the steering wheel to get it off the road and when I got it parked at the garage there was smoke coming out of it ... nah, he thought it better that I have it towed LOL. Probably a better idea :-) He also told me that it was good that I drive an SUV, because if I drove a car that was 'lower' ... the outcome could have been alot worse.

So I called the ex from the police car, while handing my paperwork to the officer, he arranged for the tow truck and we cleaned out what we needed from the truck, left the key for the tow truck and got a ride home with the coach.

Tonight of course, the 'what ifs' set in. What if the deer had come up through the windshield ... what if the air bag had deployed and I ran us off the road or into another car ... what if it had hit into my door or Alec's ... what if there had been a car behind me (the coach if she hadn't pulled around to pass us) when I hit the deer, then the breaks, and then we got hit from behind too .... and again ... back to the what if it had come through the windshield!!!!

I can't do that I know. A person will drive themselves crazy with the 'what ifs' of life.

I'll tell ya one thing ... I sure could have used a smoke after hitting that deer!!!!

31 hours and counting .... 31 hours and counting ....

Now we're without a vehicle. Sucks. I called the 1-800 emergency hotline number for my insurance when I got home ... they couldn't tell me if my policy covered a rental car. Can you even get a rental on a Sunday? I don't know ... most everything else is open, I'm hoping I can find somewhere to get a car ... and that it won't cost me a fortune ... and that my insurance will cover the cost of the damage to my vehicle ...

31 hours and counting .... 31 hours and counting!!!

Have a good night all! Time to put this rattled brain to bed :-)

Till next time :-)
K