Driving way too fast on a gravel road, losing control, and launching my truck off a 40 foot cliff in to the ocean in the middle of the night.
There was an actual moment of free fall in a nose dive as my high beams illuminated what was under the surface of the water - seaweed, starfish, barnacles, and big rocks... I wasn't wearing a seat belt so my shoulders were planted on the ceiling of the truck and my arms were locked at the elbows as I clutched the wheel. I hit the water hard and completely submerged under the surface and wedged between two boulders that were both about the size of the pick up itself.
Indeed I was going way too fast, but I'd had a few beers too. I like to downplay the drinking part and play up the speeding part, like it matters. Honestly I'd had three or four - not necessarily drunk, but faded enough to be driving stupid like that. There were two unopened bottles of beer in the console that exploded on impact and sprayed beer all over the dash, windshield, and right in my face. My knees hit the dash hard and my left hand punched through the plastic window covering the speedometer and tach, breaking my hand in a couple places. They call it a 'Boxers Fracture', for obvious reasons.
The drivers side window was open and partially sticking above the surface so I climbed out and on to one of the boulders. From there I swam across to shore and scrambled up the cliff, back on to the road, and ran like the wind in to the night. I made it a couple k back to my friends house and sat on his couch, soaking wet and in shock, as him and his friends had some weird orgy in the bedroom. The next morning they all had cat whiskers drawn on their face. A couple things - noises, suddenly made sense, for what it was worth.
The next day the cops were looking for me. I hid and watched from across the bay that the truck was in as the fire department, two cops, an ambulance, the local news, and all the neighbours stood by as a crane dragged my truck up the cliff and embankment. I could see water pouring from the cab of the pick up and couldn't help to giggle at the thought that a fish and an old boot would pour out at any moment.
Anyway I still struggle with a drinking problem, but never drive drunk anymore. Ever. As well, I am now officially the 'Grandma' driver, as my friends tease me with. Speed limit everywhere I go. I drive by the spot on the road all the time and often stop and look down over the edge of where I launched and remind myself how stupidly lucky I am to be in one piece, let alone here at all. From the way the trees on the way down are situated, I should have flipped and landed in the water upside down. No way I'd have made it out of that.
