Saturday night we had the Curry’s Auto Service company Christmas party. Every year since we started Curry’s Auto Service we’ve always thrown a good party, we are professionals after all. We’ve been blessed to be able to do this for 14 years and it gets bigger every year. We had over 200 people this year, we gave away 6 all-expense paid cruises to Alaska to our Employees of the Year and for Longevity Awards. The band was great as were all of our family, friends and team members.
But this was almost the Christmas party that wasn’t for one idiot videographer. He spent the previous night and earlier in the day at the hospital. He thought he was bullet proof, he thought he was titanium. He was distracted using his GPS on his smartphone not paying attention to the road. He hit a parked car at 65 mph. He almost killed himself….
As I’m sitting here on a Sunday afternoon, I turn on the TV to watch NFL pregame and I hear that two Dallas Cowboys were involved in tragic, all too familiar scene. High speed, alcohol and the “I am bullet proof, I am titanium” attitude combined to take the life of promising Dallas Cowboy linebacker, Jerry Brown Jr. and sending nose guard, Josh Brent to jail and having to live with the fact that he just killed his best friend. I couldn’t help but connecting the two events.
Our associate is a young, talented and energetic videographer starting his own business. Jerry Brown and Josh Brent were young, talented, physical professional football players. They thought they could drink and drive at high speed and nothing could happen to them, they were bulletproof. Alex thought he could use his GPS on his smartphone and drive as many other people do, he thought he could handle it, he was titanium. Both scenarios ended disastrously.
I drive all over Northern Virginia, driving from store to store and I am amazed at all the other idiots out there thinking they can text or surf and drive. Texting and driving is not just a young person’s problem, it’s an epidemic on our roads today that crosses generations and is every bit as dangerous as drinking and driving. You’re going to kill yourself or someone else! STOP IT! We need to take this matter very seriously. There are so many other distractions on the road as it is, texting and driving or surfing on your smart phone is just plain stupid. It’s just as stupid as drinking and driving your car at high speeds around a corner with your best friend in the car. Use hands free devices and keep your eyes on the road!
Thankfully Alex walked away with just a totaled car, some bumps and bruises and a wounded ego. But what if there was someone sitting in the car he hit? What if there was a baby in a baby seat in the back? What if Josh Brent or Jerry Brown Jr. just called a cab?