Ruby2

I went out for ice cream after chairing my Monday night AA meeting. On the way home I was directly behind a large white van with ladders on top. At first I just thought the driver was driving aggressively but figured out quickly that whomever was behind the wheel was extremely impaired. I was behind the van for about a mile during which I saw the driver cross the center line completely into the northbound lanes of traffic, not once but twice, driving straight at oncoming traffic. At one point the driver over corrected to avoid hitting the cars parked on the opposite side of the road from me and managed to do it by what had to be inches. He or she was headed straight at the side door of one of the cars. The van kept weaving over the center line and at a stop signal sat there for a bit before slowly starting forward again, weaving across the lines all the way.

I called police emergency and told them what I was seeing and I was telling them my direction of travel and where the van was heading I could hear my voice going up and down, panicking as I saw the van miss hitting the parked cars. It was really stressful and disturbing.

I know that when I was drinking I drove when I had too much. I always thought I was just fine. Driving with one eye open to better see the road and not going over the center line. Seeing it sober tonight was really terrifying. What the heck was I thinking?! I hope that the driver was stopped. Or that they pulled over shortly after I saw them. They really could have easily killed someone. Just this morning I read a news article online in our local paper. A 29 year old man rolled his truck with his three young sons inside. His four year old was ejected and killed. His two and seven year old sons were in critical condition. The man was drunk. It was a single car accident. What stupid, stupid things we do when drunk. Don't drink and drive.

Olive1

That must have been terrifying, Ruby. I am glad you are alright. I hope your call got them off the road.

Brian316

Thank you for sharing Ruby. That i put people's lives at risk so i could be drunk because i was so in the grip of my addiction is one of the biggest things that keeps me sober today.

Ruby2

Thanks Olive. This was a busy city street, one lane of travel in each direction with cars parked on either side so it is dense. Not a whole lot of room to maneuver. It is now illegal to drive in Illinois and talk on your cellphone except in an emergency. I counted this as an emergency.

FeelingGreat

hi Ruby, I hope they pulled him over. I often wonder if calls like yours have any effect; but it was the right thing to do. We had an instance here in Perth where a government minister was seen weaving all over the road. He made it home, but side-swiped several cars in the process. The police were called but didn't get there in time to breathalyse him.

Olive1

I agree, definitely an emergency.
Around this time last year I was walking my dog in my neighborhood after work. There were two helicopters that kept circling around above. When I got home, there was a news story about a drunk driver who had run over a family crossing the street right nearby. Two died, two seriously injured.
Three times the legal limit.
Tragic.

Ruby2

I don't think they got the driver. I didn't see any red or blue flashing lights ahead on the road. Must have turned off. I live on a busy street but not the one I was driving on. One night I was awoken by a crash and saw three completely mangled parked cars across the street from me. The entire engine block of the car that hit them was sitting on its own in the center of the street. That driver was drunk too. I don't let my kids play in front of the house.

Ruby2

Olive, that is horrible. Stories like that make me hug my kids and strengthen my resolve to not drink. It isn't worth my life or any one else's. I was only thinking of myself and how inconvenienced I would be if I couldn't drive.

Greg1959

I went to a friends house one day at 2 pm after a super heavy night on the booze and he owns a professional breath tester, the almost same one as the police here in Australia use. I had not had a drink for 12 hours but he told me I still reeked of alcohol, and got me to blow into his Breath Tester. I registered at 0.25 which is 5 times the legal driving limit of 0.05 here in Queensland. It makes me physically sick to think of the times I have driven first thing in the morning after a big night, even to take my kids to school. I am ashamed at how my addiction could cause me to put alcohol before my families safety and all the other innocent road users. I just thank that I never hurt anyone. Purely by extremely good luck, not by good management, that's for sure. I need to keep all of these insane behaviours in the forefront of my mind, to remind me of why I truly do not want to be that totally selfish person. I am way better than that!!!!

Ruby2

Thanks Greg. We always feel physically better, somewhat, in the morning when we are still drunk and we think we aren't. And then we think we are pulling the wool over people's eyes or sense of smell by chewing wads of gum and gargling mouthwash. I'm ashamed at putting other people at risk. I think it scared me so much tonight because it could so easily have been me behind the wheel.

Greg1959

Yes Ruby, it totally stunned me that I was still 5 times over the legal driving limit 12 hours after my last drink. God only knows what levels I would have been at on some early mornings. Like I said, I am very lucky that I didn't hurt someone, or that I was not picked up and thrown in jail, because in hindsight, I certainly deserved it.

Laura567

I probably drove drunk at times, feel really bad about it. And the worse, I always worried about getting caught...thats really not the worst that can happen. On Saturday night I was driving home from a party and was pulled up at 02 in the middle of the night. Legs started shaking and got really really nervous. Until I realized that I didn´t drink that evening.
Thanks for the post, it helps me in my fight to stay sober.

lunar

I've made a list of positive things that occur when I am sober.
#1 on my list is the fact that I don't drink and drive; the most selfish, sickening, treacherous, moronic, irresponsible act I've ever committed.
Who the heck was I to endanger innocent lives, never mind my own?

Notmyrealname

One thing I am glad for in my middleaged years is that I'm not out there on the roads on Friday or Saturday nights anymore. You can eat right and exercise and get your physicals on time, but a Chevy Impala coming through your windshield at ninety miles per hour will still put you in a closed casket funeral before you can spell out Jack Sprat on your iphone keypad.

BikerAcct

Oh yeah, I remember driving with only one eye open so I could better see the road. How I ever thought that was an ok way to drive is beyond me.

So glad I don't have to worry about ever doing that again!

FeelingGreat

I have been looking forward to being pulled over for more than 2 years, just for the virtuous feeling, but haven't, not once.

BikerAcct

Hahaha, I feel the same way. Last month, I was driving home from my girlfriends at 2:30am. A cop pulled behind me at a light. Just as the light turned green his flashers came on, I pulled over, completely sober, just waiting to see what he had to say.

He pulled around me and sped off down the street! I was kinda disappointed!

least

So glad I don't have to worry about this anymore.