It was a hectic day at the office yesterday. I had lots of stuff to do so I had to work overtime. My husband picked me up from the office at around 8 P.M., but since I was not yet finished, he brought me dinner and waited for me until I finished at around 9:10 P.M. Finally, I could just sit back and relax, or so I thought.
Traffic was light and we were slowly cruising along South Super Highway coming from Makati City. We were in no hurry to get home. Conversation inside the car was light, the topic ranging from the latest news about his friends to my current obsession -- blogging. As we were about to approach the Makati-Manila boundary, our car suddenly careened off-tangent, zigzagging as if having a mind of its own. Fortunately, my husband had presence of mind and the clear sense to grab hold of the steering wheel even when it was spinning wildly, trying to steer the car back to its proper course. Then the car stopped. Silence ensued.
Ladybug: “Anong nangyari?” (What happened?)
Hubby: Silence…breathing hard…
Ladybug: “Anong nangyari? Pumutok ba yung gulong?” (What happened? Did the tire explode?)
Hubby: “Malamang, hindi ko alam eh…” (Probably, I really don’t know)
Ladybug: “Grabe kinabahan ako dun ah…” (I got really nervous there for a while…)
Hubby: “Teka, mukhang nabangga tayo nung truck eh.” (Wait, it seems like we were hit by that truck.)
Ladybug: “Bakit parang hindi naman natin naramdaman.” (Why didn’t we feel anything?)
Hubby: “Teka, itatabi ko lang tong kotse.” (Wait, I’ll just park the car to the side.)
Upon doing so, my husband got out of the car and looked at the damage. It turns out that we were indeed hit by a truck – let me rephrase that – we were hit by a big six-wheeler delivery truck. This truck apparently transports alcoholic beverages for La Tondena Inc. The driver got out of the truck and talked to my husband. He was very apologetic and acknowledged his fault. He claimed that he was just trying to avoid some branches (what bloody tree is he talking about???) and he did not see our small (translation: teeny weeny) car driving in front of him. My husband kept his cool but I was silently chiding myself for cutting my nails the night before as I wanted very much to lunge at him and create big, red, blotchy, pus-filled stretch marks across his face. Well, at that point, what else can I do? Darn.
The time was 9:30 in the evening and upon talking to the owner of the trucking company, we had no choice but to go to the nearest police station to get a police report – a requirement of the insurance company. We went to the nearest police station which was a few blocks away, near Quirino Ave. and just before the Depot Station. Unfortunately, it was already part of Manila and they did not have jurisdiction over the incident. After about an hour and a couple of hits and misses, we finally found the appropriate traffic command station that had the jurisdiction and proper authority to fill out a police report. But it didn’t stop there. We had to photocopy the registration papers, as well as the license of my husband and the truck driver in order for them to properly fill out the police report. Mind you, this was already 10:30 in the evening. Finding an open photocopying business at this time of night is no mean feat. We finally found one after an hour of searching. I was cursing the truck driver under my breath.
Finally, we went back to the traffic command station with the required papers. Photographs of the vehicles were also needed for insurance purposes. Hey, I have a new camera—Canon Ixus 750! I could take pictures with it! Oh no, I suddenly remembered that I left the camera at home, safely nestled inside my drawer, gathering dust.
Darn! I made a mental note to always bring the camera with me from now on.
Here’s a picture of the damage to the back portion of our car. (Taken with my camera phone only.)
Finally, at 12:40 in the morning, after pictures were taken and the police report filled out, we were on our way home, FINALLY.
We arrived home at around 1:10 in the morning. We were so exhausted all we could do was climb into bed and fall asleep.
Traffic was light and we were slowly cruising along South Super Highway coming from Makati City. We were in no hurry to get home. Conversation inside the car was light, the topic ranging from the latest news about his friends to my current obsession -- blogging. As we were about to approach the Makati-Manila boundary, our car suddenly careened off-tangent, zigzagging as if having a mind of its own. Fortunately, my husband had presence of mind and the clear sense to grab hold of the steering wheel even when it was spinning wildly, trying to steer the car back to its proper course. Then the car stopped. Silence ensued.
Ladybug: “Anong nangyari?” (What happened?)
Hubby: Silence…breathing hard…
Ladybug: “Anong nangyari? Pumutok ba yung gulong?” (What happened? Did the tire explode?)
Hubby: “Malamang, hindi ko alam eh…” (Probably, I really don’t know)
Ladybug: “Grabe kinabahan ako dun ah…” (I got really nervous there for a while…)
Hubby: “Teka, mukhang nabangga tayo nung truck eh.” (Wait, it seems like we were hit by that truck.)
Ladybug: “Bakit parang hindi naman natin naramdaman.” (Why didn’t we feel anything?)
Hubby: “Teka, itatabi ko lang tong kotse.” (Wait, I’ll just park the car to the side.)
Upon doing so, my husband got out of the car and looked at the damage. It turns out that we were indeed hit by a truck – let me rephrase that – we were hit by a big six-wheeler delivery truck. This truck apparently transports alcoholic beverages for La Tondena Inc. The driver got out of the truck and talked to my husband. He was very apologetic and acknowledged his fault. He claimed that he was just trying to avoid some branches (what bloody tree is he talking about???) and he did not see our small (translation: teeny weeny) car driving in front of him. My husband kept his cool but I was silently chiding myself for cutting my nails the night before as I wanted very much to lunge at him and create big, red, blotchy, pus-filled stretch marks across his face. Well, at that point, what else can I do? Darn.
The time was 9:30 in the evening and upon talking to the owner of the trucking company, we had no choice but to go to the nearest police station to get a police report – a requirement of the insurance company. We went to the nearest police station which was a few blocks away, near Quirino Ave. and just before the Depot Station. Unfortunately, it was already part of Manila and they did not have jurisdiction over the incident. After about an hour and a couple of hits and misses, we finally found the appropriate traffic command station that had the jurisdiction and proper authority to fill out a police report. But it didn’t stop there. We had to photocopy the registration papers, as well as the license of my husband and the truck driver in order for them to properly fill out the police report. Mind you, this was already 10:30 in the evening. Finding an open photocopying business at this time of night is no mean feat. We finally found one after an hour of searching. I was cursing the truck driver under my breath.
Finally, we went back to the traffic command station with the required papers. Photographs of the vehicles were also needed for insurance purposes. Hey, I have a new camera—Canon Ixus 750! I could take pictures with it! Oh no, I suddenly remembered that I left the camera at home, safely nestled inside my drawer, gathering dust.
Darn! I made a mental note to always bring the camera with me from now on.
Here’s a picture of the damage to the back portion of our car. (Taken with my camera phone only.)
Finally, at 12:40 in the morning, after pictures were taken and the police report filled out, we were on our way home, FINALLY.
We arrived home at around 1:10 in the morning. We were so exhausted all we could do was climb into bed and fall asleep.
16 comments:
Oh dear, just be thankful nothing happened to you both. A six-wheeler! Sounds like you did a 360 there.
I can just feel the frustration in doing all those paper work. They should have photocopying machines. So typical, nothing's change.
Anyways, catch up with your lost sleep tonight. :)
ipanema> We were really thankful that aside from the dent in our car, nothing bad happened to my husband and I. :-) I hate to think of the possible scenarios. Thanks for your concern ipanema. :-)
I agree with ipanema. Good thing you and your husband were both safe, not even a scratch(?)
I always have my camera in my purse. :)
Whew, that was close but thank God, you're both safe. Now comes the paperchase. I've had my car bumped 3 times (none of them my fault). After each incident, I had to waste so much time and go through a lot of headache following up insurance papers, police reports and body repair, not to mention having to suffer the inconvenience of not having a car to use. Grrr!
It's good you're safe Ladybug. That's the most important thing. If I were you, I'd take the day off from work. :) It's a very good excuse.
yup...good thing the collision was relatively minor and you and the hubby are both okay...
niceheart> after the incident, I now bring the camera with me all the time. I only had my camera phone that night. As you can see, the resolution was terrible. Good thing the police officer had a camera. But not all police stations have that.
bugsybee> Three times! Super hassle! Our car was also involved in an accident last year -- not our fault also. The lady driving behind us (in a Ford Expedition, no less) was texting and did not see us stop. Grrr....these people should be sentenced to community service.
toe> Hahaha...wish I could take the day off...lots of things to do at the office. But I'll make sure to pamper myself this wekend. :-)
mita> Yup...good thing we were not harmed. We were really fortunate that there were no vehicles on either side or we would surely have bumped into them.
Thank you all for your concern. I'm touched. *blush*
So glad to hear neither one of you were hurt. Kudos to you and your husband for keeping your cool under the circumstances.
This is the reason I hardly drive at nighttime these days.
eric> Thanks for your concern. Driving at night is unavoidable for us since we usually go home at around 8 P.M. The sad part there is, even though I always remind my husband to drive carefully, we really can't control the drivers of the vehicles around us. Sheesh!
Such a long night...It must have been a great hazzle over that minor mishap. Buti na lang you came out unscathed.
Thank God you were never hurt. About those government offices that require photocopies of whatever, I think it's high time for them to purchase a photocopier already. They should own a camera too. Hay.
Major Tom> You said it! It was really a lloooonnggg night. Hope you're feeling better too. :-)
Abaniko> Hay nako...tama ka diyan. Only in the Philippines. I hope these procedures improve in the future.
Hmmm, if you think that was tough, try reading this early post of mine.
http://snglguy.com/?p=17
Have great and safe weekend, Ladybug. :-)
snglguy> Ouch....your experience was even worse! You too...have an enjoyable long weekend.
I'm happy nothing bad happened to you and your hubby.
Minsan kahit anong ingat natin e iyong mga kasabay sa kalsada puro walang modo, nadidisgrasya pa rin.
I will link you to my blog, if you don't mind. Thanks
lani> Thanks for the concern...and thanks for visiting my blog. Ok, I already added you to my links. Thanks again!
Post a Comment