there is another ...

...story to tell about hitting things in the highway that are too memorable. Heading  south from Atlanta towards home on the interstate, this time in the dark. Maybe seven or eight years ago. I was tooling along at a reasonable speed, probably just over 70 mph, and hit something that could have really messed up my car. But at that speed, and on the highway surrounded by other vehicles whizzing past as if you were at a complete stop, it is not possible to pull over and examine the problem.

You have to make an instantaneous decision. If you choose to stop, you are well past the actual scene of the problem, plus in the dark, on a busy interstate. Not likely you will be able to get out of traffic, off the road, find what you hit, and remain alive. So I did what the average red-blooded American motorist would do: hope for the best, and keep driving.

The sound that object made when it hit the underside of my low-slung Toyota made was seriously alarming. It also knocked loose a panel that protects the underside of the engine, and damaged the inner covering of the wheel well. Plus being really scare-y. A person stranded on a dark highway can always find cause for alarm, anxiety and concern: knowing how often bizarre behavior is headline news.

I honestly believe that 'news' is part of the reason they are out there, doing more and more creepy stuff. The publicity puts ideas in their unbalanced brains, whereupon they seek the attention and notoriety.  'Bad' news always sells, right? I am well known for sharing my opinion that 'there are crazy people out there, walking around on the streets, looking perfectly normal.' We just don't know to notice them until they suddenly surprise us by Going Postal.

I got safely home, not knowing what I had encountered. Found someone who would look under there and ascertain  no serious damage. Years later - just recently - I conclude that was another incident of big semi-trailers or cargo container trucks loosing tires. The driver often does not know he is missing an entire tire until miles down the road when he gets low on gas. Thereby leaving hazards in the lanes for other motorists to encounter, attempt to avoid. We have all been en route and had to suddenly swerve to avoid furniture, shrubbery, deceased animals abandoned in the lane. And we are all driving 'way too fast....