Saturday, January 18, 2014

Hit a deer

It isn't often that when I write I have peace about me, but today I do.
While driving to the Atlantic City airport at 4:30 AM to deliver my favorite daughter and my favorite son-in-law Johnny for a trip to Florida, we hit a deer, or the deer hit us. It happened fast, instantaneously fast. I can still see the deer's face, it's eyes, as the airbag deployed. So many things came to thought, like how that one absolute second of doing something, anything different would have made the difference. 

The fact is - it was close.I was holding a cup of hot coffee in my hand and Aryn and I got splattered with the coffee, we thought it was blood, ours and and the deer's. It was neither, there was no blood. 

I remember the impact and then the airbag deploying. Amazing how that I can remember both of those moments separately, separated by what, a second?

All four of us - not a scratch. The deer hit the driver's headlight smashing the front of the car to the battery and then dented the door. There was deer hair all over the car including the rear of the car. The deer was larger than life when we hit. It happened so fast. So very fast.

It was cold, it was dark. People whizzed by as we gathered ourselves together on the side of the road. I remember Margaret letting out 2 or 3 short screams as it happened. I remember our hug as we awaited the police. 

The state trooper came, the tow truck arrived, Johnny and Aryn missed their flight and my dad came to pick us up. 

Hours later Margaret sits next to me looking at cars on the internet. The tv is off. The cats sleep peacefully and Johnny and Aryn are enroute to Florida. My back has a slight soreness, nothing big, I feel tranquil. I feel relaxed. I am enjoying the moments as small as they are. 

I am not caught up in my possessions for this moment. I am caught up in God. I am glad I talk to Him. I am glad to have a relationship with Him. Not because He spared us so much as that I know Him. That's why I am peaceful. May you too have peace. 
At approximately 4:30 AM on January 18th my wife and I went to drive Aryn and Johnny to the AC airport via the AC expressway. I remember before leaving thinking of all the deer on the road. There are 30,000 deer/car collisions in NJ per year. The tow truck driver said that during mating season he can have up to 15 deer related accident calls per night. 
Mile marker 37. 
The car sits in front of Elmers on 130 for the weekend. 
We have a 500.00 deductible and despite my wanting to cancel "collision" insurance on the car Margaret never did. 
The car has been paid off for two years. 
I'm just glad we're alive. 

Go find God, He is real. 

Sunday, January 05, 2014

my relationship w/wood


I am in a relationship with wood, wood of many different colors, textures and hardness, even woods of different ages.

Today I may love the white wood more  and tomorrow the dark brown one and quite often I love the purple one the best.

penter I met once told me, " a good carpenter can fix any mistake", I knew the guy for 30 minutes and couldn't tell you what he looked like, but I will never forget his words.

I am self-taught, at most things in life - guitar/music, gardening, woodworking and painting & drawing.

These crosses have been fixed a lot during their creation. The beams don't always match up, sometimes I affix them differently and they have a lot of issues in aspects that would, quite frankly, bore you. Yet, wood is wonderful. Truly wonderful.