(no subject)
One striking thing wrecking your car badly is how unremarkable the whole event is. The drama, the indecision, the excitement all took place in the span of five seconds, or probably less. Once kinetic energy expires, when the smashing is all said and done, the only thing left is the details.
The car is ruined, or not ruined. The police arrive promptly. A tow truck cleans away the debris. It happens the same way fifty times a day, and no sort of protest or initiative will alter the inevitable course of events.
The worst thing is, this whole scene is laid out not when the accident happens, but when the car is purchased. The risk is constantly there. Every time the key is turned in the ignition, the dice are rolled. It happens to every driver, eventually.
This is the truly intolerable aspect of car ownership -- the black cloud hanging over your head every day that you drive a car. The cloud is essentially lifted from the user of public transportation; the catastrophe which awaits the bus rider is like any earthquake, lightning strike or random shooting. He doesn't hold the steering wheel of his fate in his own hands.
And that's why the event is unremarkable. It's just what I knew would happen since two years ago when I bought the car. The only thing I didn't know is what day it would happen.
The car is ruined, or not ruined. The police arrive promptly. A tow truck cleans away the debris. It happens the same way fifty times a day, and no sort of protest or initiative will alter the inevitable course of events.
The worst thing is, this whole scene is laid out not when the accident happens, but when the car is purchased. The risk is constantly there. Every time the key is turned in the ignition, the dice are rolled. It happens to every driver, eventually.
This is the truly intolerable aspect of car ownership -- the black cloud hanging over your head every day that you drive a car. The cloud is essentially lifted from the user of public transportation; the catastrophe which awaits the bus rider is like any earthquake, lightning strike or random shooting. He doesn't hold the steering wheel of his fate in his own hands.
And that's why the event is unremarkable. It's just what I knew would happen since two years ago when I bought the car. The only thing I didn't know is what day it would happen.