By: Dick Hodgetts; Columnist

Automobile wrecks are not the stuff of humor.  Sometimes after a bit of time has passed they have a funny side.  This is about a recent accident that seems to defy the odds.  You judge if enough time has expired to see a bit of humor.

    A young co-ed drives between Milledgeville and her home in Buford.  This is a trip she takes frequently.  It’s important on these types of journeys that one stays tuned to a good radio station.  As you move along Highway 441 radio stations fade  and tuning is sometimes required on a car radio.  Zipping along Hwy 441, she is fiddling with her radio and ooops…..a car is turning immediately in front of her.  In fact, this car had been sitting waiting for oncoming traffic to clear for a period of time to make a turn into the Morgan County Detention Center.   But, if you are a co-ed and have to choose between hearing “Bare Naked Ladies” and watching traffic, the Ladies will usually win out.  So, ka-boom, she plows into a big ol car with two passengers inside.

    Thankfully, everything built into today’s cars works as designed.  Air bags deploy, her engine drops onto the road surface instead of coming back into the passenger compartment.  Even seat belts protect all the passengers as advertised.   Soon she is surrounded by emergency personnel who determine that she and the folks in the other car are not injured.  But, it’s a Morgan County vehicle, so everyone is transported to Morgan County Hospital-checked over carefully and given drug tests.  All are okay.   This statement overlooks some bruises and soreness.

    Somewhere along about now, one of the nice ladies assisting this co-ed tell her: “you know in 20 years when you got teens learning to drive, this will be one of those funny stories you tell them”.  

    “Why?” she inquires.              “Because you just plowed into the back of Sheriff Robert Markley’s car-and his turn signal is still a clicking. Sweetie.” 

    She thinks for a while and responds: “do you think there is any other route between Milledgeville and Buford?  I got three years before I graduate.”

    Maybe in two decades it will be a bit more humorous to her. The rest of us can chuckle now, as no one was seriously hurt; and it did not happen to us. It’s another good reason to get a Sirius radio in your car-you can stay tuned to one channel all the way home.  And Sirius has 120 channels, enough even for today’s co-eds.  But, a 66–year–old guy is not supposed to be advising a 19– year–old on today’s technology. 

    Don’t they know everything worth knowing already?

Printed in the June 4, 2009 Edition.