Following up on the thread from a few months ago about fate vs. chance, here's an occurrence from this past Thursday night that has me thinking about it...
I roadtripped to State College on Thursday night to see Herbie and Alchemy at The Brewery. (BTW, good show!) I had hoped to leave the venue around 1:30 or 1:45 to get back to Altoona, as I had an errand to run on Friday morning. Just as the show was concluding and I was ready to head out the door, a inebriated hippie-like gentleman started talking my ear off about various stuff, and polite as I tend to be in such situations, I couldn't break off the conversation. So I wind up not escaping The Brewery until 2 AM. I had to make a brief pit stop at the Atherton St. Sheetz for a coffee while heading out of town. This put me in the vicinity of Route 220 between Port Matilda and Bald Eagle between 2:25 and 2:35 AM. I came upon an accident site as I neared the Bald Eagle intersection; since there was light drizzle and mist, all I could see was a big rig trailer part way off the northbound lane of the road, with three or four emergency vehicles parked behind it with lights flashing. I figured a rig driver probably fell asleep at the wheel and went off the road (which I've seen before). Then on the radio Friday morning, I hear that this accident was actually a fatality, as a 19-year old guy from Altoona plowed head-on into the rig and died instantly. The accident reportedly happened at 2:30 AM - mere minutes before I passed by.
Several things crossed my mind. First, had either (a) the hippie gentleman not delayed me with his conversation, or (b) I hadn't stopped at the Sheetz for coffee, I might have been an eyewitness to the wreck, or even involved in it! Scary thought!
Also, I recall that just after I went through the light in Port Matilda, a car came up behind me and passed me going at a pretty good clip. I wonder if this might have been the deceased, racing towards his fate...
And the another thought that crosses my mind - this accident is yet another reason why I think I'll be using Routes 45 and 550 to get to and from State College much more often, at least until Penndot finishes the I-99 corridor!
Fate or Chance?
Fate or Chance?
Last edited by Jim Price on Friday Oct 15, 2004, edited 1 time in total.
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J Michaels
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Life is a game of seconds and inches - a few of either in a different direction, and each of our lives would be very different at innumerable turns. Like the scene in the movie "Signs" where the guy who hit Mel Gibson's wife while asleep at the wheel says, "It had to be during those 10 or 15 seconds as I passed her. It's almost like it was meant to be."
Remarkable how our lives move in ever so subtle ways.
Remarkable how our lives move in ever so subtle ways.
You better call me a doctor - feelin' no pain!
