People do buy cars everyday of the week, but buying your first car with your hard-earned money is a sweet experience. Because of the traffic and parking problems, we preferred our trusty bike for work and mainly used the car on Sundays and at night. So the car must have clocked a mere 500 kms even after 4 months.
Anywhichway, this post is about the lousy luck we have with the car.
Barely a month into ownership, we took it out on a Sunday night in January to visit family. We were rounding the corner at Sikulpuikawn, towards Khatla, when a white, hardtopped speeding Gypsy, driving on the wrong lane, hit the side of our car. The Gypsy did not stop for a second. I clambered out of the car, pregnant and all, but it was almost out of view already. We couldn't get the license number, and had only a broken part of its muddy bumper, and a nasty dent on our bumper and along the back door. We were advised by the police and other people not to claim insurance so we spent Rs 6,000/- to get it fixed. We could only assume the driver of the gypsy to be a drunk kid driving his dad's jeep. For days, we eyed all white-topped Gypsy's with suspicion, and looked for missing parts of their bumper. But with time, we got over our first mishap.
Last night, we were on our way to meet some people from work, when a Karizma bike came rounding the corner on the wrong lane. .H braked, the bike swerved, but he managed to hit the driver side of the car door. The biker was drunk, head lolling and speech slurring. H got out of the car but he didn't see the dent immediately. The taxi which had stopped behind the bike pointed out the dent on the car door, at which the biker immediately sped off again. You can see the dent for yourself.
We noted down the Licence plate number this time, and we are going to talk to the owner this time. I am sick and tired of being other people's casualty, especially drunk drivers. We didn't get hurt, but most people in road traffic accidents are either victims of drunk drivers, or are drunk themselves. So, overwhelmed by this impotent rage, here I am blogging about it to let off steam.I had always thought getting a life membership (of Bible Society of India) on cars and other inanimate objects was frivolous and unnecessary. But after so many mishaps (many, considering the number of times the car's been on the road; and unwarranted, because we were never speeding, or on the wrong side), I am considering the idea of getting a life membership for the car. ..atleast The Society will be using the money to spread the Good Word!
7 comments:
Awwww congrats and commiserations. Didn't know there were that many drunk drivers around. There really should be some kind of public awareness drive (with pictures for example of that South American girl who got horribly burned and disfigured after being hit by a drunk driver) preferably on local TV since that's what gets to people most methinks. And people really get life memberships on cars and stuff? That's so funny.
Thanks, Calliopia:) I think the reason we meet so many drunks is because we go out mainly at night and Sundays, when the traffic is light and people can speed up. I think I'm going to develop a road phobia :)
I agree with you on the drunk-driving awareness thing. Maybe because we have total prohibition on alcohol, I never hear of such awareness campaigns here. But a good many people are victims of drunk driving.
About the life membership, there's a family who has gotten their whole slew of vehicles, including their scooty a membership. Other elite members are a pig called Hangi and a leaky septic tank. I heard about them in church on a membership drive so I presume the story is true. Supposedly, some guy has taken membership for his salt and other containers. That might be an exaggeration tho!
DUI sucks. I once read a very touching e-mail forward about a little girl who abstained from alcohol but died because she was hit by a drunk driver... addressed to her mom... I think you know which mail I'm talking about... it was very popular.
About your car... why did you censor your license plate? :-) Afraid the drunk driver might read your post and trace you? :D
Yeah Kim, drunk drivers should be hanged from their toes.
We talked to the bike owner, he turned out to be a pretty decent guy, and talks are underway.
And a request, please don't link me on misual.com. I mostly blog about boring personal stuff, so it's kind of embarrasing putting people through my banal yammerings :) Thanks!
Yup, your link is removed asap, although I must admit I don't want to deny the rest of the Mizos the wonderful opportunity to read your terrific posts, which by the way are extremely well written and among the highly worth reading English blogs in the Zo-blogosphere.
Mahse i thu thu, boss! :-)
car pang ah khian rubber an vuah chi ang hi vuah ve ula....a rang chu a veng ve khawp asin!! khalh zir bawk la a tha ang...
@illusionaire, thanks :) Mi i vatlawn thiam ve! But my blog deals with non-issues, if I ever write a life changing post, please link me then, hehe :)
U Ven, nia, a rubber ang kha a thleng tawh an tia, kan hman lo ve eeem a ni. lol. Motor khalh pawh zir chu hun khawp mai, mahse Ruatfeli hi kalsan rei ngam si lova. Excuses, excuses :) Tiknge i lo haw dawn?
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