June 29, 2008

• Hit and Run

  Let me start off by saying that I'm not injured at all, but this morning, I was hit by a car as Johnny, Jack, Atari and I were walking across the street to go to the park. It's a crossing we've made a million times before. This morning was no different -- it was 8:45 a.m., there wasn't much traffic, and all around us, families, couples and exercisers were taking advantage of the nice (but not yet hot) weather to be outdoors.

  The light was green, and the walk sign was still up. Across the intersection, a beat-up silver hatchback (I didn't notice more detail than that, although Johnny also saw that the driver was male) was waiting to make a left turn. There are very few left-turn arrows in Los Angeles (something that bugs me for many reasons), so I'm assuming when the driver saw that there was no oncoming traffic, he quickly took the opportunity to make his turn without seeing us there. I'm a little incredulous because there were four of us -- two adults, a stroller and a dog! Also, we were already past the midpoint of the intersection, so he could have easily made a wider turn and avoided us. It really seemed like he sped up when he saw us and aimed for us, although I'm sure that's not the case.

  Anyway, it all happened very quickly. By the time we saw the car coming, there wasn't much to do. I was so scared and only thought about Jack. I was the one pushing his stroller. I hurried up so that Jack's stroller would be out of harm's way. Johnny was walking to my right, and he gripped my arms so tightly that there's a mark on my right arm. Apparently he was thinking the same thing, because he tried to get between me and the car, and he also pushed me forward pretty hard to try to get me out of the car's way. I'm so glad he did that, because I'm pretty sure I would have been badly hurt otherwise. When the car hit me, the tire hit the left side of my butt, the inside of my right ankle and nicked the backside of my left heel. I think it also nicked Johnny as it drove past, but we're not sure. Luckily, Jack was not hit, nor was Atari. They were both in front of us, out of the car's way, thank God. The car drove off without slowing down, and Johnny helped me off of the ground (I fell after being hit) and we hurried to the other side (we were only a dozen feet or so away from the other side!!). The few other drivers around yelled to see if we were OK. Johnny answered that we were and started to run after the driver, but it was too late. He was so mad and was yelling. One of the other drivers sped off to chase after the guy who hit us.

  I was crying a little because I was really scared and thinking of what could have happened to Jack. I was really grateful that he was OK and in fact was playing happily with a plastic fish toy inside his stroller. He had gotten scared when Johnny started yelling and running after the car, but otherwise Jack was unscathed. At that moment a police car happened to drive by, so we flagged it down. The officers were nice and put on their siren to see if they could chase the car down. While the police car went on its chase, the witness in the pickup came back. He said he had caught up with the driver at a stoplight and said to him, "Did you know you hit a lady back there?" And the guy shrugged, rolled up his window and drove off! The guy in the pickup did get a license plate number, which he wrote down and handed to Johnny. When the police car came back, the officers ran the number but couldn't turn anything up. They suspect it's a salvaged car and that the plate isn't on the record.

  We filed a report, but doubt anything will come of it. I'm just really glad that I'm OK. It's always been a nightmare of mine to be hit by a car, especially while I'm with Jack, but I also hate to be paranoid and figured it would never happen! We are always really careful when crossing the street. We went to an urgent care clinic, where a doctor examined my ankle and determined that aside from a bruise, there wasn't a sprain or anything. If I feel anything weird tomorrow or Tuesday, I'm supposed to go back, but she thinks it's fine. I do, too -- the tire didn't run over me or anything. I'm not going to run for a few days, just to be safe, but the doctor said I could keep up with my training by walking the distance and seeing how my ankle does. A foot injury is no joke for a runner (or anyone else), so I'll be taking that advice seriously.

  I'm also happy that Johnny decided at the last minute to go to the park with me and Jack. We had left the apartment together, but he was going to head back with Atari after Atari peed. Jack and I usually have some alone time at the park on weekend mornings. But this morning was so nice that after we had parted ways, Johnny and Atari ran to catch up with us. If I'd just been with Jack and gotten hit, I don't know what I would have done. Also, I really think Johnny's pushing me at the last minute ensured that I didn't get hurt. I'm just so mad that the guy drove off. I mean, OK, I can see how maybe he didn't see us before making his turn, and maybe it was too late to stop. But there's no way he didn't know that he had hit us!

  It's not very environmentally friendly, but from now on, I think I will drive Jack to the park. It's only about three-quarters of a mile, and I love to walk, but my mom has always pointed out that the intersection we have to cross is a bit busy, and I'm just scared after today. I know it's unlikely to happen again, but it will be a while before I can forget the image of the car coming toward me! I just kept thinking it would stop, and hoping I could outwalk it, but nope, it hit me. It was very surreal.

  The silver lining is that this adds to the arsenal of dramatic stories I can tell. "So, how was your weekend?" "Oh, it was fine. I got hit by a car." Sigh.

  Thanks for reading! And yes, I really am OK!

  • 6:47 pm
  • 23 Comments