Thursday, November 1, 2007

Drowning

I woke from a dream this morning in which I lost control of my car and
it went off a bridge, plummeting into a large body of water. When I
woke, I found myself in that not-quite-awake state, thinking about the
dream. Suddenly, I was visualizing the car going into water. How would
I deal with it? I'd learned on TV that your should break your window.
But, the challenge comes from the fact that you are supposed to wait
for the car to completely fill up so the water pressure inside the car
is equal to the pressure outside of the car, making it possible to
swim out. Still, I put myself in this scenario and can feel mild panic
in my chest as I visualize the various ways I could deal with it.

Then, the dog is with me in the car and I am now trying to figure out
how to get the dog out. Will I be able to get him in by arms before we
hit the water so I can try to stop him from slamming into the
windshield? Will he breathe in the minute I allow the water to rise
above his head? Will he know to swim up if he is smart enough to hold
his breath? What do I do if he panics and won't let me drag him out of
the car under the water?

I run this scenario over and over in my head, slightly different each
time, until finally, Oliver's head pops up over the edge of my bed,
'MORNING 'MORNING HI SCRATCH MY HEAD LET ME OUTSIDE GOTTA PEE! He
pulls me from this un-reality and I am completely relieved when I pull
myself out of it completely.

When the hell am I likely to drive off a bridge anyway?

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