Harry Potter, the Psychic Boss and the Laneways of Doom
Scene: The office
“I had a dream about you last night.” states my boss, walking into the office this morning.
“Really, you dream about me?” I joke.
“You were hit by a car. I was there. It wasn’t me that hit you, but I saw it.”
“Uh huh.. yeah.. bike vs. car.. sounds just like me.”
“You were okay though..”
(he’s thinking “pity about that” I’m sure!)
(Cue: Work montage)
Scene: The ride home
All suited up in my stylish ‘knicks and Crappy T-Shirt(tm)’ fashion statement from hell, I roll down the road, heading for home.
Cruising down the Burke Road recently made famous by aus.bicycle’s ‘dave’ and ‘hippy’ for its right-turning traffic and laneways of doom, life couldn’t be peachier. Okay, it could, but that’s a whole other chapter.
Doing my normal thing, passing all the cars waiting for Cantebury Road lights to change, I notice a 4WD. This 4WD is sticking its nose through the traffic to make a right-hand turn across my path. This large, shiny, 4WD isn’t paying much attention. In fact, I think I’m going to have to crash into it. Yeah, that’s what I’ll do. Serves it right for not giving way to oncoming traffic. I don’t actually have enough room to stop, with half the vehicle across the lane in my path, so I brake and panic turn. It’s not enough and I plow into the 4WD.
I had washed off quite a bit of speed and whacked into the white ‘building-on-wheels’ with my front wheel and right knuckles.
Throw in an awkward stumble over the bike and my arse doesn’t even hit the ground – I’m still upright. Stare at 4WD’s back window as it crawls into a driveway (okay so it wasn’t a laneway THIS time). I follow – there’s no chance this one is getting out of here.
A women gets out of the car and begins apologising.
“Yeah, yeah.. I’m alive.. whatever.. Just slow down and open your eyes!”
(insert standard discussion about not seeing you, are you okay, want a drink, need help putting on your chain or straightening your bars?)
I go easy on her because she was very nice about it (much to the chagrin of some of you I bet!) twist my bars back around and walk back out to the road.
“What are you doing now?”
“Uh.. I’m riding home”
“Oh, okay, well as long as you’re alright?”
Like I said, very apologetic and it wasn’t a very hard impact.
In fact, the only evidence of the incident now is a shade of white paint on my glove’s knuckles.
I’m not sure what this makes the count, I’ve lost track now, but I think this may tip the balance in favour of ‘cars hitting me’ as opposed to ‘me hitting cars’.
The wackiest part was my boss ‘predicting’ this in a dream! I was laughing about that all the way home.. well, sort of 🙂
Just in case you’re wondering, ‘The Boss’ will remain nameless, since I’m sure he doesn’t want 1004 people ringing him up all hours asking for next week’s lotto numbers! 😀