Well, Gale struck again, she just seems to hang in there in my life. How do you ditch such a cruel woman in one’s life.

Here’s what she did to me now, or was it just a streak of bad choice, which is probably more true , but a lesson, that I can tell the world it won’t happen again, at least the most major mistake, that most people think won’t happen to them.

Now, don’t take me wrong, I am not condemning drinking, no way, shape or form, but I can tell you, from experience, and expense, take that cab, or don’t worry if you don’t have a change of undies, or just spoiled and want to sleep in your own bed, for it can be a costly choice. And, also, when you think someone is a friend, but when something happens, they can quickly turn on you, like the gales of a calm water.

On December 12, 2009, my friend, who I had been dating for a couple of months, had gone up to our friends hunting cabin. I loved going there, they had converted their pole barn into a kitchen and mini bar. A couple of days before, when we were out there, I had told everyone, to come for dinner, for I had found this recipe I wanted to try on everyone.

So, Saturday morning, I had gathered all my ingredients, packed up my Cherokee, that I had bought in November 2009, after my 1997 Jimmy had burned on August 4, 2009.

My (boy) friends truck did not have four wheel drive, so he drove, my wheels to the camp. It had just snowed and the weather was cold, especially considering we live in Michigan.

We got there about ten a.m in the morning. I started putting my appetizer together, so that the flavors would blend. He started drinking, vodka and orange juice, and asked me if I wanted a beer.

I looked at him, and said, “No, I don’t think so, it’s a little early for me.”

“Well, not for me and we’re at camp.” And be began drinking. Later in the day, Pam had came out to check out how things were going and we chatted for a few minutes and she went back into the main house. Ronnie had also came out, chatted with Kenny and I, peeked at the one dish I had put together, and told me if I needed anything just give me a shout.

I sat down for a few minutes, to take a break, and looked at my “schedule” that I had planned so that I could get everything ready by six p.m. and make sure, I would time everything just right, for this awesome dinner that I had planned and there were several people coming. I was on cloud nine, for I love to cook and wanted everything to be perfect.  

By, three p.m. I had everything under control, everything was just they way I had planned, and I sat down, with some friends, that had arrived, and had, a beer. Mistake number one.

By 4:30 p.m. everything was still going to plans, the chicken was in the oven, everyone was arriving and appetizers were being served, by 5:30 p.m. it was time to focus, and as we all cooks know making everything time out just right, sometimes is the biggest challenge.

By, 6:15, all guests had arrived and it was show time. The dinner, I will brag was a hit. We had a couple of people that didn’t know what was going on, showed up just because, they wanted to and we still had food leftover, so they got to eat to. By, 7:30, dinner was done, kitchen cleaned up, now it was time for another beer. Mistake number two. By, eight fifteen  I was ready to go, and Kenny, raised his glass, and announced he had something to say. I blew it off for he had been drinking all day, and one of his friends, that was leaving stopped and said, “ I gotta hear this.”

Kenny looked at me, and asked, “Will you marry me?”

I was caught way off guard, for it had not even entered my mind. In matter of fact, what was on my mind, was I was trying to figure outa nice way to tell him, I didn’t want to be in a relationship with him anymore. It just wasn’t there.

I told him I would think about it, and we left it at that. I also said I am ready to go, for I had to work the next day, and I had my limit, two beers. Another friend, who was excited about the idea, gave all of us, a small shot of Tequila Rose. Like an idiot, I thought what the hell.

After all, my house was only two miles away. Mistake number three.

I grabbed everything, loaded up the car and gave everybody a hug. We got to the car, Kenny wanted to drive. “No way, I told him, you’ve been drinking all day and the roads were icy.”

He finally agreed, we got in, I put my seatbelt on, and looked over, and saw he didn’t put his on. “ I asked him, to put it on, and he came back with a profanity, (the fuck bomb) we are only going a couple miles and we headed for home. Kenny started chattering as we all know intoxicated people usually do, and he made the comment about he was going to start moving his stuff in.

I told him, “ Hold on there, I was not ready to move in with anyone and that I wanted to absorb all this in, I was and had to be honest and said, “I’m definitely not ready to get married.”

He got abusive, verbally I saw another side of him, fast.

I told him, “ I think what I need to do, is when we get to the gate, I am going to turn around and take you back to camp, you spend the night there, and I will come pick you up when I get off work tomorrow, “

We got to the entrance of the gate, and he grabbed the steering wheel, we starting sliding around on the icy roads and before I could gain control of the car, we hit a tree, head on.   

Since he was not wearing his seatbelt, he hit he windshield, and was hurt, more than I was.

Even, thouugh the air bag deployed, it broke my right wrist.

Smoke was coming from the hood and my first thought was, it was going to catch on fire. I got out, and ran to his side to try to get him out and he was hollering I can’t my leg it hurts.

I grabbed my cell phone no signal. We were not that far from camp, and I started heading up there, for I knew I would have signal there. Some friends that were late comers, came driving up the lane, I saw there headlights and ran toward them, they saw the car. They had signal, so they called 911.

It didn’t take very long for ambulances and State Troopers to get there, in matter of fact it seemed like one State Trooper, dropped from the sky.

We were taken to Alpena General Hospital, were they told me, Kenny had a fracture hip in two places, and I had a factored right wrist.

After, putting an I.V. in my arm, and pumping me with some kind of pain killer, an officer, came and took a breathalyzer. He looked at the gadget, and I was waiting for those words, “You are under arrest for DWI. “ None came, he walked out of the room and my thoughts were, maybe I had spaced them far enough apart and since I had chowed down, like a tiger feasting I had passed.

Doctors, set my wrist, and came and told me I could go home. Kenny would be having surgery tomorrow. (Sunday) The cab, took me to Kenny’s apartment, and the next day, I called in to work, told them what happened, and then went up to the hospital, were we waited for Kenny to have surgery.

His stay in the hospital extended to four weeks, then transferred to Tendercare nursing home where he under went rehabilitation. All during this time, I did visit him, everyday, with a deep guilty feeling, and when I would get so down, he would tell me, “it was just an accident” we’ll get through it.”

One day, I surprised him a little early, at Tendercare, I caught him, walking out of the bathroom, walking on BOTH, legs, without a walker, that he was suppose to be using, that he was insisting he needed as well as the pain pills he was downing. He was even having one of his friends come up and give him Oxycodone.

A couple days later, I told him, I didn’t think it was going to work out, I didn’t want someone in my life, that was addicted to drugs, and considering I had came across some of his friends, that had revealed he had a drug problem before, I also found that most of his friends, he introduced me to, was on probation for drugs.

That was the end of it just being an accident and forgiveness. He filed a lawsuit and a complaint to get me arrested for DWI. And, they did. I was in South Carolina, visiting my son and daughter-in-law, looking for a job, for my intentions were to move there with them, to help us out both financially and to get to spend more time with them.

I got a phone call from a friend, saying the State Troopers were at my house, telling him that they had a warrant for my arrest. I drove back to Michigan, contacted the state trooper office, and it wasn’t even an hour and they were at my house, telling me I was under arrest for DWI.

Now, mind you, the accident happened December 12, 2009, they arrested me, May 5, 2010.

I have since been to court, I was put on probation, I had been ordered to do Impact Weekend, which I just completed and my restrictions of my probation, I have my license suspended, I can’t go in a restaurant or anywhere, where they sell alcohol by the glass and I have to do an eight week, out patient counseling program.

Do, I deserve this, yes, I probably do, will this happened again, you can bet your sweet tooth it won’t.

Before I was arrested, I did find out, that Kenny was arrested for DWI, while I was in S.C. , rumors have it, I called him, but I did not know he was in a bar, and because he believes this is also another reason why he pushed for the DWI on me, and he also believed he was going to get more money, which it did not. He got the same amount they offered him, whether we had stayed together or not, $20,000. Even, though he got his DWI before I did, he has yet been to court, he is still driving and going to the bars.

I am only telling the world about this, for it could have happened to anyone, and when you drink and drive, anything can happen, and when something happens, the true friendship, or maybe this is where the saying “When it comes to money” ……………

I am also telling my story, when you have an intoxicated passenger, put them in the back seat and don’t have an argument with them, you just never know, what they might do. I am going to say, I won’t ever give a friend who has been drinking a ride, I would not want anything to happen to anyone else, what happened to Kenny and I, put true friendship will be put on the line if anything does happen.

I will get through this, and it has shown me who my true friends are and what kind of a person Kenny really is, and it cost me, not just in dollars, but my future on some aspects of life.

God Bless and please don’t drink and drive

The consequences are a high, but at least no one died that night.