Excitement in the Canyons

This morning I decided that I wanted to post something more uplifting than the last post about the economy. Perhaps pictures of my late fall garden, the apple harvest, the family cookout, a recipe. But no, I'm posting about my son's latest accident.

Ricky just left the house to visit a friend in Parkview Hospital and the phone rings. "Mom, I'm in the Canyons and my head hurts and my car is in the ditch."

Hoping for the best, I hopped in my car for the short ride to perhaps the most dangerous section of road in the county and found my son hurting but not injured. The car was smashed on every corner. I called 911 and they recommended an ambulance. A few minutes later I heard the siren and looked up the hill at the curve and saw a sheriff's car hit the same slick spot that sent Ricky into a guard rail and across the road into the ditch.

Except the sheriff's car went airborne, knocking down a small tree, and ended up teetering on a ridge. The ambulance showed up along with a fire truck. Then six sheriff's cars and two tow trucks. Poor Ricky was just shivering in the icy rain that was falling.

We're home. I'm monitoring Ricky in case of a concussion, but his vital signs are fine. He doesn't know how sore he is going to be tomorrow though. And we have to figure out the car situation so he can go to classes.

And just why has our family been fiscally responsible?

This post on Fort Wayne Politics most succinctly describes my own reaction to our financial crisis. I do not want an economic meltdown, but we are only postponing the need to address the unsustainable level of private, corporate and government debt.

Steve and I have been fiscally responsible. We drive used cars. We remodeled our home (mostly ourselves) instead of buying a new home. We are debt-free. We saved for retirement. Then I opened my retirement fund statement this morning and determined that I will have to die ten years sooner than I planned and probably from starvation because inflation is gobbling up our income. That's my typical hyperbole, brought on by anger at the stupidity of our elected officials. Steve and I are well-equipped to face whatever the future brings; we have the skills, the common-sense, the temperament, the discipline, and the faith needed for tough times. I just wish I could find someone to vote for with skills, common-sense, and discipline.