unfiltered: The Nissan Eulogy

Our 1995 Nissan Altima (sometimes referred to as "The Cloud") passed away this Monday morning, Dec 12th 2005, quite suddenly and unexpectantly. Our almost three year relationship ended abruptly when a blue/silver BMW beheaded her in a nearly head on collision. The Nissan is mostly still intact... just the most important and valuable parts probably are no longer usable. The damage will be far more than the worth of the car... hence the diagnoses that the Nissan is now "dead". Time seems to freeze as the Nissan let out her last breath when the air bag exploded near my face.

I feel sad sometimes when I think about how quickly the Nissan was destroyed. One minute I was walking to my car to head off to work, and the next I was standing on the street's curb, staring in shock at my car as the transmission and radiator fluid poured out. Neither of the drivers were seriously injured… he did have a small gash in his head from his air bag but he was quickly calmed and treated. I had some soreness of neck and back but after visiting the chiropractor the next day, was almost as good as usual.

The neighbors, our landlord, the wife of the BMW owner, firemen, and police officers were all very kind, acting as though this was something that happened every day. In fact, I heard more than once, "welcome to LA" as sightseers passed by and stopped to see the wreckage.

Kevin and I currently have a rented car to use for a few days and then we will figure out how to live in this huge, auto-land, with one car… at least for now. We are thankful for God's mercy and provision as we had just finalized car insurance nearly a week before and no serious injuries were caused. No blame has been placed yet, I think both drivers did the best they could at the time. We will find out the insurance company's response in a few days though.

The story (in a nutshell)… I was coming out of our apartment parking lot, trying to make a left hand turn. The street I was turning onto to has poor visibility b/c cars park along both sides. I am always nervous pulling out… looking both ways for sometimes several minutes before heading out. This time, I thought I was clear, after watching a black SUV park further up the road one way, and watching the nearest light turn red the other way. I didn't see the BMW until my air bag exploded.

And that is our latest LA adventure/experience. We have survived yet again. Thanks for all your calls, emails, support and prayers…. We really appreciate you all. And remember, especially as you see the pictures below, that I really am okay.

The entrance to our parking spot... we drive underneath another complex to get to our apt in the back... this is where I was pulling out from to make a left turn.

My car is shown above and then the BMW below...

But remember... I'm okay! Just a little sore...

On another note, here are some pictures from LA that we took this last weekend.

Shown above is my favorite flower in LA... and I haven't figured out what it is called yet. Any ideas?

It is unusual to find a tree that has leaves that actually act like its winter... so I had to take a picture of one. This is in a garden at the Getty museum.