wake-up calls

“Doesn’t it make you grateful? Because they were… they were people just like us, only unluckier.” Jesus’ Son

I am not accident prone. I don’t want to jinx myself, but I have never had to visit the emergency room for a physical injury. In fact, you might say that I have lived a charmed life as far as accidents are concerned. So when the bus stopped short and I almost went through the windshield, it gave me a pregnant pause. It’s true what they say about youth feeling invincible, but I am no longer a young man. Thankfully, I was able to escape from the potential car crash unscathed. But it made me think about the staggering amount of things that can go wrong on a daily basis. Honestly, if you gave it your full attention, you’d be scared shitless. As I make my way around town, I often have close calls. Random occurrences that are enough of an inconvenience that it shakes me out of my complacency. I often race around our town like a triathlon athlete on speed. As a professional pedestrian, I shouldn’t take it for granted that cars obey traffic laws. Although I do object to reckless jaywalking! That’s probably the only quality of life initiative that I agree with. I often experience “warning shots” that take the place of an actual catastrophe. Like a sales receipt flying into the gutter instead of my wallet. It allows me to learn from my mistake without having to suffer the consequences of my misdeeds. I guess it’s the mental equivalent of watching a true crime story on TV. The awful truth is that somebody else’s misfortune makes you feel infinitely better about your own predicament. You may express false sympathy, but deep down inside, you breathe a huge sigh of relief. It puts your own troubles into perspective: maybe my day wasn’t so awful after all. But there is a perverse pleasure that you obtain by watching a fellow in free fall. It’s human nature but it’s not pretty. However, I experienced a profound measure of gratitude today. After the initial shock wore off and I swore like a sailor at the bus driver. I had time to digest the situation, I was very thankful. You don’t stop and think about the casual cruelty of the universe until it spits in your face. But today it barely stomped on my foot. But it did wake me up to an uncomfortable alternative reality. Once shattered, twice shy! And it reminded me of this superb effort from Oingo Boingo lead singer Danny Elfman. I should put solo in square quotes because it was a group effort released under Elfman’s name simply to circumvent a clause in their A&M contract. Regardless, it is a clever single and it serves to remind me that I’m a lucky bastard.