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While visiting Andrea and Eric at Thanksgiving, the four of us had a fun time taking the VIA Institute on Character test that Eric uses as part of the class he teaches. We compared results, and mine included this:  I was surprised to see this listed as a strength, having always considered my "honesty" as 90% weakness. I guess this proves that any strength taken to an extreme really does become a weakness. Regardless, this probably explains why I feel compelled to share this story about a really bad choice I recently made. Hopefully, by sharing it, you'll make better choices for yourself.  It all started as we were driving to California in October. I'm often on my laptop during long drives, and on the second evening of our trip, while I was taking a break from the laptop, my mouse slid in off my lap desk and ended up behind my seat. During a previous trip, Jim had hurt his shoulder while reaching for something back there, and I didn't want to do the same. And I wanted that mouse. So I unbuckled my seat belt and did some gymnastics to retrieve it. It was dark out, and as I kneeled on the seat clutching my laptop and mouse with my rear end pointed toward the windshield, I said to Jim, "This would be a really bad time to get in an accident." Then, before I knew it, (I thought) he had slammed on the breaks and my back went flying into the glovebox. Notice how pointy that glove box is in the photo below.  Let me quickly point out that Jim did not slam on the brakes! He had the car (Telsa Model Y) in "Full Self Drive" mode and the speed limit changed right after I made my comment (which caused the car to gradually slow on it's own), and at the same time, we hit a bump in the road. I was feeling very relaxed, so really did get slammed into that glove box. I'm still not sure whether being relaxed was good or bad for my back. One thing that definitely was lucky was that my spine didn't hit anything, it was more the side of my back. But it hurt! Thankfully, I was pretty sure right away that the muscle (or muscles) took the hit, and I figured they'd heal. Also, thankfully, especially given that this was only the second day of the trip, I was able to carry my own luggage and both driving and walking were relatively comfortable. Surprisingly, a bruise never emerged. The thing that really hurt was rolling over in bed and getting in and out of bed! I went a full week before I was able to roll over without waking up at night. Nine weeks later, I'm relieved to report that I've pretty much forgotten about it. As I write, I said to Jim, while twisting my back, "I can't feel even a ... well I guess I feel a tiny twinge when I twist just right." But I don't think I thought about my back at all over the last two days. I recognize that I was really lucky. And I feel really stupid. But didn't want to let my embarrassment stop me from sharing a story that might help you avoid my mistake! I leave you with two thoughts ...
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