Time to relate my wife driving story. My wife is a pretty decent driver but when both of our kids were little she developed a really bad habit of paying more attention to them in the back seat then she did to the road (thankfully they're grown now and that problem has passed.)
Many years ago, she was driving her two year old Acura Integra GS-R to work w/ both kids in the back. Somebody pulled out in front of her on a surface street and she T-boned him. He took full blame for the accident but I knew my wife was partially to blame.
The Acura was paid for, but we had good insurance. We got a check within a week and she already knew what she wanted - a new Honda Accord LX V6 (she had actually been talking about trading the Acura in prior to wrecking it). We got the check on a Wednesday, made the deal on the internet/over the phone on Thursday, picked it up from the dealership on Friday after work.
We were driving home from the dealership on Friday evening, coming up to a traffic light (I was following her in my truck), 1 child in each vehicle. She lost focus on the light (talking to my daughter in the back) and couldn't stop in time to not hit the car in front of her. She jumped a curb to avoid an accident, blew out the right front tire, caused some minor plastic damage to the bumper cover.
I'm pretty fricking irritated, I changed the tire and we drove home. Her rental car (still there from totaling the Acura) was in her spot, she parked behind it. I didn't say much, it was getting dark, hard to see. We went inside and dealt with the kids.
The next morning I got up to go drive her car to see how bad things are - will she be able to drive it? I've got to return the rental car if its OK to drive the new Honda till we figure out the repairs. I drive off in the new Honda and its pulling for the ditch like a run away stage coach. I make a block and come home.
Walk inside, asked the wife to get the keys to the rental car, back it out of her spot so I can park the Honda.
"What's wrong with it?"
"I don't want to discuss it right now, let's just get them moved and we'll talk about it later."
As I fight the Honda down the drive way, I notice the neighbor across the street is cutting his grass - looks like he got a new mower.
My wife backs the rental car down the driveway after me, focused intently on the Honda - she's trying to figure out what's wrong "it doesn't look that bad..."
SONFOFAB****!!!!
I lay on the horn hard in the Honda - too late. My wife is not paying attention and backs the rental car across the street into the neighbors yard and on top of his new mower!
I lost it now! My neighbor comes walking back from his backyard compost pile carrying his empty bagger towards the pancaked mower under the rental car's rear tire just in time to hear me cursing and gesturing wildly at my wife. As she drives the rental car back up on to our driveway he slowly walks over to me where I stood in his yard. My wife is bawling crying, running for the back door.
"I'll get my check book"
"That's a new mower."
"I'll get my check book!"
"Ok"
So in a period of 8 days my wife wrecked 3 cars to the tune of ~$24,000 in damage and totaled 1 lawn mower.
And we're still married! We can laugh about it now, then, not so much.
David
