<p>Thank God that no one was hurt. BYW, my husband backed out of our driveway and hit a parked car…it happens. That’s why they are called accidents. I suspect (hope) that your mother was just terrified that you could have been hurt…and that she vented because it was the fear speaking. Perhaps you could find a way to help pay for the damaged car. That might help to smooth things out a bit. Have I been there? Yes, my son hit another car and totalled out his Volvo. (The other driver, who was a member of our club, wasn’t hurt, no damage…very sympathetic.) On my daughter’s first day in college my daughter hit her brand new car on the wall of the parking garage…tiny bump. Both kids were fine…oh and yes…I do remember a little fender bender I had when I was a new driver. My parents’ reaction was simply…Is everyone ok? Things are fixable, don’t worry. This too shall pass</p>
<p>Elizabeth, listen Kiddo, I’ve heard more stories than I can count from experienced adult drivers who backed out and hit something. Cats seem to take the brunt of it! 
</p>
<p>My best advice to you: If you’re in a hurry (and we all are, on occasion), tell yourself to calm down as soon as your butt hits the driver’s seat. Tell yourself to settle down and focus on driving. Being on time is not worth getting a ticket or causing an accident.</p>
<p>Driveways are absolutely notorious for accidents, and even the best drivers have mishaps trying to back out. My H hit our neighbor’s son’s motorcycle – twice. I backed into a bright, orange dumpster at my kids’ junior high school. The thing was as big as a house, but I didn’t look carefully enough before I backed up. Watch out for that tricky blind spot when you’re backing up. Of course, I blamed the school for putting the dumpster in a place where I could hit it! It was totally my fault.</p>
<p>dmd –</p>
<p>I can add mine to the “perfect husband” club.</p>
<p>He had a brand new silver Mercedes. I’m not a car person so I can’t remember the series, but it wasn’t a small one. Gorgeous car. Company car – he and I had driven a series of junkers in our married life, so to have something like this show up in our driveway implied nothing short of a miracle. </p>
<p>First time I drove it, I creased the fender. Lots of reasons why it wasn’t “really” my fault, but I won’t bore you with the details. I seriously considered driving to Mexico and never returning, then realized that at my advanced age, well-preserved but nonetheless a 40-something, I needed to face my problems with a little more courage. </p>
<p>Went straight home, handed him the keys, 'fessed up. His instant response: “So what. It’s just a car.”</p>
<p>You can only imagine how richly he was – and continues to be – rewarded for that kindness…</p>
<p>Thanks everyone- I feel quite a bit better now. We don’t have estimates yet, but I suspect they’ll be in soon. My mom seems to have calmed down a bit- in no small part due the the bomb threat we had at school today- but that’s a whole different story (which I’ll tell if anyone wants to hear it). I’ve definitely learned my lesson about careful driving…and I hope this is the worst accident I ever get into.</p>
<p>Elizabeth - I am glad that you feel much better than when you first posted. As you can see, many people have been involved in similar incidents. Now you have a lifetime supply of stories about car accidents in which no one got hurt :)</p>
<p>My mom seems to have calmed down a bit- in no small part due the the bomb threat we had at school today</p>
<p>My thought is that put the whole car thing in perspective.</p>
<p>Yeah, I agree.</p>
<p>This bomb threat thing was crazy though- the fire alarm went off 5 minutes after class started, and we all went outside thinking it was a drill, most of us without coats (note: we’re in Maine in February), and two gym classes in shorts and t-shirts. We stood outside for about an hour and a half while the bomb squad arrived. The buses were bringing the younger kids to school and couldn’t come get us until about 9:30. We were shuttled to the old highschool (which is now used every once in a while for rec basketball and stuff) and put in the gym. No one was allowed to leave unless a parent came to get them. There were enough cell phones in people’s pockets and enough communication between parents that about 3/4 of the student body got picked up. The school wasn’t cleared until about 12:00. </p>
<p>Yesterday my mom had gotten angry with my (much) older brother when he tried to put the car thing in perspective. She told him that he was not my father and shouldn’t try to stand in as one- she’s changed her mind since he picked me up in loco parentis during the bomb scare :). Things have calmed down very nicely here. Thanks for your help and support- I appreciate it.</p>
<p>Holy cats, Elizabeth, what a saga.</p>
<p>I have ripped off a rear-view mirror backing up - burst into tears - my husband ordered a new one and fixed it. Going forwards, I took out a perfectly innocent mailbox.</p>
<p>My son totalled his 6 week old car (he got it for Christmas '03) last Feb 14 - it was his fault and there were minor injuries to three people in other car. The accident involved fire engines, police and an ambulance - plus towing of both cars. I have no idea what the cost was to my ins co - but my insurance is now $500 a month - no way around it.</p>
<p>I was upset with him at the time, but didn’t yell or get angry. What helped was that he was very apologetic and never made excuses. He misjudged - and he had only been driving on his own for about 3 weeks. I can still recall the accident I had when I first started driving. Everyone I speak with agrees that kids are expected to have accidents as they learn - and we just pray that nobody gets hurt. I purposely bought him a car he could crash. He has since gotten a nicer car and has only done one stupid thing (backing up with the door open and the door caught on a tree - so he has a dent in the side that will remain there until he gets enough money to fix it).</p>
<p>I remember my own mom backing out of the garage and slamming into the side of my dad’s PORSCHE, which was parked just outside of the driveway, at an angle. They never reported it to insurance. I’m not sure what the cost was. But, my mom got away clean because she turned the tables by yelling at my dad for having his car parked there. Somehow, it became his fault. I don’t recommend this approach for you, however :)</p>
<p>I think we all need radar for driving in reverse …</p>
<p>My son very slowly and carefully backed up until he made contact with my car. He came back in the house clearly shaken and ran up to his room. After I called him down to ask him what happened he confessed to me. We both went outside and the only possibility was that his rear bumper had made contact with my turned front tire. There was not a mark on either car. My allignment wasn’t even affected.</p>
<p>ohio_mom: my husband’s new Nissan Murano (2005) has a video camera that shows an image-- of what’s behind you–on the dashboard of the car, complete with red, yellow, and green zones so you can judge how far away things are. It is SO cool. He got that after our D backed into a stone wall and left a MINOR scratch on his (old) car.</p>
<p>Well, elizabeth, I managed to have my own car saga tonight. Side-swiped a curb in my own neighborhood and blew out both driver’s side tires! Luckily, close enough to walk back home and wait for AAA from my cozy living rm.</p>
<p>So, if it’s any consolation, I am approx. 3x as old as you are with approx. 20x the years of driving experience, and I’m just as able to mess up as anyone.</p>
<p>All these accident stories reminded me of one I had a long time ago and had managed to bury in my memory. My husband and I were visiting friends in upstate NY. I think we had two small children at the same time, probably 1 and 3 years old. We had spent a couple of nights at their house and had a nice visit. They had a few animals, including a couple of tame geese since they lived in the country. They really liked the geese and told us how they mate for life, their cute habits, etc. The morning we had to leave our friends left for work and left us to lock up. My husband had made arrangements to have another friend pick him up the night before - they were going to a thing in Canada. So it was just the kids and me.</p>
<p>You can see where this is going, right? So, I load up our stuff and the kids and back out. I hear a funny sound and immediately stop the car and jump out. There’s one of the pet geese, squished. He had been napping under my back wheel! The other goose came over and started squawking at me. Ughh, it was horrible. I started crying , my little daughter wanted to know what was going on . No cell phone. Closest neighbor is 1/4 mile down the road. So, I quickly drove to the neighbors and he called our friend at work then came back to the house and buried the goose. I’d rather hit a car then squish a pet any day!</p>
<p>About a week after I bought my new car I was at a friends house showing it to him, and we were downstairs hanging out in his room when his dad called down and said he just accidently backed into a “little black car”… i ran upstairs so fast, i was about to have a heart attack. He didn’t really back into it - he just wanted me to come up so he could tell me that he liked my new car. I was so relieved, yet mad at the same time!</p>
<p>I met Elizabeth on the Dartmouth board, and she is one of the nicest most gracious young women that I have had the pleasure of meeting. So to the end to what has been a crazy few days, Elizabeth told us that she got a likely letter from Wellesley.</p>
<p>Elizabeth, sorry to tell your news before you could f/u here, but I am just so proud of you and wanted you to know that there are many others who are proud of you also.</p>
<p>Elizabeth and I have “met” in PM cyberspace also, as we are “neighbors.” Second sybbie’s testimonial. Congratulations again elizabeth - now we have something else in common if you decide on Wellesley. I am a Wellesley alum.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone :).</p>
<p>Sybbie- I don’t mind having you break the news first at all. Who better than one of my mentors from the Dartmouth days?</p>
<p>Jmmom- I’m so glad to hear that you’re a Wellesley alum- they seem few and far between around here. We’ll see what happens with decisions in April, but it’s nice to know that I’ve got a school as great as Wellesley to hang on to no matter what.</p>
<p>Congrats Elizabeth!!</p>
<p>KathieP, that sad goose story takes the cake for car accidents stories on this thread. (sniff)</p>
<p>Elizabeth, congratulations on your Wellesley letter; what a nice way to end the week!</p>