Big bang baby, it's a crash crash crash.

As I try to emerge from the stupor of a day-long Quantum Leap marathon on the Sci-Fi Channel, I am going to play good news-bad news with you crazy kids. The good news is that I am currently in possession of a shiny new black Chevy Cobalt. It has only 7500 miles on it, and it handles so smoothly, I couldn't even tell it was running when I first hopped into it. So what's the bad news?

The car is a rental from Enterprise...because I wrecked my Camry. I feel so stupid. I hopped into the car at 7:20 this morning, and of course it was miserable and gray and rainy, because that's how Maryland rolls this week. At any rate, I was rushing to get out of my development, and I pulled out into the road without really checking the left side of the road. I didn't hear the guy honk his horn, but I saw him a second or two before the impact. I froze up and heard the crunch, that muffled, exterior sound that comes with a collision. I started sliding, and didn't stop even after I thought I had control of the wheel and brakes. I finally settled to a stop in the road, right in front of the sidewalk. The impact caused me to bang my head on the door, but thankfully, I'm not hurt. Neither was the other guy, who all things considered, was pretty calm. I've never dealt with anything like this. It scared the hell out of me. The paramedics showed up, but left as soon as we assured them there were no injuries. Then a police officer came, but didn't file a report because we weren't hurt. When I tried to drive off, the car was handling very oddly, so the cop flagged me down and said that the axel on my side was badly bent and I wouldn't be able to go anywhere. So I thanked him, pulled back into the development, and came inside. That was that.

So what can you do? I called US News and left a message for my boss saying that I wouldn't be in today. It was gross out, and I was cold from being out there for a half hour or whatever, so I changed into pajamas, and just sat until I got my wits about me enough to call my mom. Then I laid out on the couch, fell asleep for a bit, and called Geico. They handled everything for me, which calmed me down a bit. From the questions they asked, I got the idea that I'm not in as deep shit as I could be. I had my seat belt on, there were no passengers or injuries, and the police didn't give me a citation. So they know I wasn't drunk at 7 AM, haha. But they called a tow truck, and arranged to have my mess schlepped off to a body shop in Ellicott City. I decided that it would be good to have a way to go about my daily life, so I also got Geico to set me up with Enterprise. After negotiating with the Enterprise agent for a car that would be covered for the $25 a day coverage under my insurance, I wound up with the nifty little Cobalt. The first thing they tried to give me was an SUV...my ass. At one of the slightly over $25 tiers was a Dodge Stratus; I have to admit I was sorely tempted. "I DRIVE A DODGE STRATUS! I'M A DIVISION MANAGER! PEOPLE ARE AFRAID OF ME!!!" It probably would've been too distracting. At least I didn't wind up in a Ford, or as the old saying goes, Found On the Road Dead.

So in the long run, what does this mean? After the initial freak-out this morning, I've been trying not to think about it. I was already worried about money before I had this brain fart. The best case scenario is that my car can be fixed. In that case, it costs me a $250 deductible and whatever monthly rate hike they charge me for insurance. That's the BEST case. Worst case? My car is totaled. It's highly possible. This car is ten years old, 219,000 miles gone, and it now has a mangled front fender with a bashed headlight. The body damage is such that I can't open the driver's side door all the way. The big deal, of course, is the axel, which is bent at a 60 degree angle, at least. If my car were in great shape, it would be worth $6000 blue book. It's not quite that good, as it stands. If it's totaled, I need a new car. Either I get a cheap used car, and probably pay god knows what else in repairs at undetermined intervals. More likely I get the cheapest new car that I can, and try to get a longer payment plan so that I can actually squeeze it into my monthly budget. Wheeeeeee.

The real world is fun, ain't it?

Current Music: Led Zeppelin - Babe I'm Gonna Leave You