Trippy

I've mentioned before that I love it when people trip and fall. It is one of my guilty pleasures. It makes me howl with laughter.

And so, as the world turns, it was fate that eventually it would happen to me -- and it did last night, in a big, bad way.

I was out with my buddy Kathleen for a glass or two of wine while we talked over life's problems -- work, school, relationships, blahblahblah. We sorted out all our issues. Done and done.

Then, walking out to my car, gravity took hold of me and thrashed me about the place as I caught my heel on the edge of the street curb.

First, I felt my body being propelled forward and down.

Next, my knees -- both of them -- slammed down on the asphalt, skidding across it.

Then, my hands -- both of them -- slammed into more asphalt, skidding across it.

I thought I was done. I was not. Gravity and Fate were still ruling my world. I saw asphalt hurtling up at amazing speed toward my face. This was going to leave a mark.

And so then, my chin -- the only one I've got -- slammed into the asphalt, skidding across it.

Ow. A wave of nausea. Shock. A second wave of adrenaline. I hopped up onto my feet.

"Oh my God! What--? Are you OK?" My friend was distraught.

"Owwww..." I said. What else was there to say?

She hugged me. That felt better. But my face really hurt. And my knees. And hands.

"Oh, hey -- oh, you're bleeding! On your face," she said.

I looked across the street. Two women from the gay bar were watching, smoking. They turned away when I looked at them. I appreciated that.

"I don't feel well," I said. I touched my chin. Blood. Not a lot, but still. And my favorite pair of jeans were ripped and bloody at the knees.

Then, without warning, the hilarity/hysteria bubbled up and out and we couldn't stop laughing. It was an epic trip-and-fall. Really, really awesomely bad, in a good way. Even if it really hurt to laugh. It's all about the story, after all.

And lucky for me, I got to tell the story again and again today, when people asked how I got the road rash on my face.