Jack’s legs were still weak when he opened the door, stepped into the safety of his kitchen, and practically melted into a seat at the table.
His wife closed the refrigerator door and sat across from him. “You look like hell. Traffic bad again?”
Jack shook his head. “Accident. I just escaped being killed.”
“Oh my God!” She straightened in her chair and locked eyes with him. “Are you okay? What happened?”
“When I came out of the big curve on Sixth, a pick-up was coming at me head-on. I had trees on one side and on-coming traffic on the other. I thought it was over for me.”
The wife walked around the table and hugged him. “Thank God you’re okay.”
Their son entered the room. “Gross. Save that for later.” He shifted his eyes from them to the stove as he spoke. “How long before dinner?”
The wife went to adjust the heat on the stove. “Dad’s telling me something important. It’ll be about fifteen minutes, so don’t eat anything.”
“How’d you get out?” She sat back down at the table. The son took the seat across from her and reached for a banana from the bowl in the center of the table.
“He went into the trees.” Jack pulled in a deep breath and exhaled between his teeth, regretting the few seconds he had been relieved to see the truck wrap around an Oak.
“Was the driver hurt?” The wife asked, taking the banana away from the son, who left the room in a huff.
“He was talking when they took him in the ambulance. Said a bee stung him on the eye. He apologized to me.”
The back door swung open and slammed against the counter. A daughter and her friend charged in, both speaking at once. “Oh. My. God,” the daughter said. “Some freaking drunk just ran everybody off the road on Sixth.”
“When?” The wife asked. “Just now, or a while ago?”
“I don’t know the exact time.” The daughter’s tone was indignant. “Everybody’s talking about it at Thornton’s.”
“Dad was involved,” the mother explained. “That’s not exactly how it happened.”
“I don’t think everyone would lie about it,” the friend said. “I know some of the guys at Thornton’s and they aren’t liars.”
“He wasn’t drunk,” Jack said. “A bee stung him. And he didn’t run everybody off the road. He ran himself off the road and hit a tree to keep from hitting me.”
“He had to be drunk or on something,” the daughter said.
“Anybody that would run people off the road and hit a tree has to be drunk,” the friend agreed. “I hope he goes to jail.”
While this friend chatted with her parents, the daughter connected with another friend on her cell phone. “Oh. My. God. You won’t believe what happened on Sixth. I knew about it before anybody and already told Megan. Call her. I need to tell Rachel.”
The wife left the table to serve dinner. Both girls made calls on their phones while Jack tried to tell them what had really happened. “He was driving a red pick-up, not a wrecker. No, he did not appear to be drunk.” The girls ignored him and continued to spread the story they had heard in Thornton’s.
Son returned when his mother announced dinner. “Man, you should see what was just on the news. A truck, wrapped all the way around a tree on Sixth.”
“Dork. We’ve been talking about that for the last ten minutes.” The sister tossed her napkin at her brother and laughed.
“Some guy ran across traffic and off the road,” the brother said.
The mother returned the stray napkin to the sister while she explained to the brother. “Dad was there. He was almost hit by that truck.”
“Somebody’s probably dead. The truck is mangled,” the son continued.
“We already know,” his sister yelled. “I knew it before you did, jerk.”
The boy filled his plate and took a bite. “Dad,” he turned to his father. “Did you hear about that truck that hit a tree on Sixth?
Reading Gather yesterday was like sitting in a room with this family. For some reason, people seem to come here to publish, not read, the same as these people want to talk without listening. Those publish-without-reading people have little regard for details or proof. They want to publish first and most often, without bothering to see if twenty others have already published the same topic, and without researching first to get the facts.
One person publishes a blurb, states a rumor without fact, and follows with a question, either asking the reader to do the research or to chat about it with no information. A group of people who have no information come along to express their opinions about the topic that none of them has bothered to investigate. Should someone who has researched the topic come along and try to correct the misguided opinions that others formed on nothing, that person is ignored or insulted.
And pity the poor person who rates the blurb and misguided conversation low.
I am concerned about a community or society where people care more about being first, feeling important, being ‘yes men’ to make friends and points, than they do about using their minds, and being correct. Does anyone benefit by thinking a drunk ran everyone off the road on Sixth and hoping he ends up in jail?
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Comments: 44
When I was reading this, gather did come to mind. Also with the one-liners about something or other, in the case of your article, the accident, but in the case of many, many articles(?) posted here, they're all of one line and about basically nothing.
Remember the old game we used to play (hopefully, I'm not the only one who played it) where all the kids sat in a circle and one would whisper something in the next persons ear, and so on until it got to the last person and it was never remotely what the first person had said.
It's refreshing to read an article that has had thought put into it, nevermind more than a couple lines. - Mark
But since no one listens around here, it won't matter what happened. It will only matter that the people that are telling the story are heard, no matter if they have the facts straight or not.
Good job, Sandy.
On a different note - recently in a frustrating conversation I finally said to someone:
If you'll start listening to me instead of just impatiently waiting until I shut up so you can talk, I won't have to keep repeating myself.
AND - Flit's comment is great - Do we have a flag like that?
love reading your stuff
Mark, I remember that game well. I based a novel, Doctrinaire, PSC. on the game. It's humor with a message. One reader told me he appreciated the use of humor because when the reality of what he was laughing at finally hit, the come down gave the message double impact.
Richard, I received the announcement for that article and didn't go there. Smoking is a topic I should not discuss. I smoke and I will rationalize it, from personal and medical perspectives. The research I did (many years worth) was more than ten years ago, and most of the doctors I worked with are retired. When I saw the article, I didn't have my emotions and rebellion in check enough to enter the conversation so I stayed out. That said, if this was the one time you published a line and a question, everything else you have published saves you from fitting with the family in my story.
Robiyah, now that the first half of this story has served its purpose, maybe you should write the rest. I laughed at your ending.
Thanks, everyone.
This is a great parable for the Gather expereince.
The inane run rampant in these parts. It's like the people we all know who talk to hear the sound of their voice and rarely say much of anything. The lazy ones who want to exist and have others do for them; including thinking.
I'm always amazed when reading the threads about the letter games and those who admit that they find their brains are stimulated by them.
I was reading statistic for American students, from 1999 to 2005 and we still have
40 % of high school students rating below average= poor.
The ability to have a reasoned discussion I think entails good manners, civility, ability to be logical and concise, common sense and most of all the ability to listen.
If your story is an accurate representation of the average family I am afraid we may want to rethink the scholastic curriculum and include extra mandatory classes in english literature, creative writing, debate and manners.
Lea, from what I've seen in recent years, logic and debate are words/concepts that have been shoved aside in favor of, "everyone is entitled to an opinion" with no requirement that those opinions be based on anything other than, "This is what I want to think."
I didn't assign the I.Q. requirement. If forced to, I think double digits would cover this.
I am also amazed, or saddened, to see that adults want to convince me that they enjoy thinking of three and four letter words - for no reason.
The internet makes it easy for everyone to jump up and down and say "look at me!" These people don't get the same recognition in real life. I'm not condoning it, that's how it appears to be. And that is very sad.
Whose satire and intelligence is missing??? Not yours for sure
Thanks, Joanne and Priscilla.
Sandy, I think am am on the precipice of loving you, unless I am the guy who writes without rhyme or reason.
Seriously, Sandy, I loved the way you wrote a story or fable to illustrate your point. A couple weeks ago I connected with a guy who's article, a game was near the top of Gathers "most read" list. I thought someone who was near the top of the list might be worth connecting with. I read a number of the other things he had written and commented on about five of them. Last Saturday there were about 30 notices in my email that he had published something. I went to his article list. The first entry was something like this: Write all the words you can think of that begin with "t." Now, these should be important words like toast or trip, not like the or to. There were a couple other "articles" like that. I thought, I'm not going to waste my time doing something almost totally mindless so this guy can collect points. I noticed he'd made only a handful's worth of comments during the past week. I pushed my cursor to the left side of the screen and clicked on "remove connection" under his name.
If you find someone whose work and comments you enjoy, and then follow that person's comments, you will soon find a group of people you enjoy.
I enjoy a wide range of topics, love humor, and also dive into battles (I fought to save Gather from the gamers, and for honest ratings and critique. I lost.) so following me might lead you places you don't want to go. When I learn more about your interests, I might be able to point you in the right direction.
How anybody could possibly support someone who treats veterans and supporters of veterans so unbelievably callously is beyond me.
(btw, this is actually based on a story that broke yesterday, in which McCain is alleged to have assaulted some POW/MIA supporters when they confronted him...no substantiantion to the story as of yet, but, as we know all too well, facts don't seem to matter much when it comes to smearing a polical figure!)
Allegedly.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/6/26/11526/0229/950/542130
Yes! You're important! Are you my friend? (I need lots of on line friends...)
(I'll give you points, in the hope that you "point" back at me..."
LOL!
Sandy, I didn't know you when you wrote this, but have to admit that I sometimes get so discouraged with gather articles that my head hurts and I wander away for a week or so. Disconnect.
Then I'll revisit and find something beautiful, and I think to myself...what other beautiful articles, pictures have I missed this past week?
As for Dubya being on the boards, that would entail reading and comprehension, so I'm betting he put the Drones of Rove on the task instead. I wonder which websites Dubya and Dick actually read? Nah! Nevermind.
I was raised in just such a family as you describe. Thanks for the flashback to the kitchen table.
Blessings to you, Sandy.
Wilka
This is a baffling site, that's for sure. The non-articles test my patience so I don't connect to people who publish them or comment on them, and pretty much stay in my little corner. That's sad, because I know I miss new people.
Last night, I ventured into the 'bigger world' of Gather and wanted to scream. I went through ten pages of comments - TEN WHOLE PAGES - and found ONE that actually said something more than my six-year-old granddaughter would type. I didn't make it through two pages of articles before I knew I would get myself kicked off if I didn't get out fast.
I spend very little time on Gather these days, and the lack of good reading material, and the proliferation of "name something that starts with _. has caused me to seek amusement in a more intellectual pursuit. I play Mobsters on My Space!
Really good writing. I enjoyed it.