From the Archives
Getting Dragged Down the Street

So back when I was JUST 18 my parents moved to Pittsburgh. They actually moved ON my birthday DAY... July 31st for those thinking about buying me a gift.

The reason they were moving was that my dad had gotten a new job and his sales territory was no longer Cleveland, but Pittsburgh. So they moved about 125 miles to the east.

Anyway, one of the very last things my dad said to me when they left was this...
"Try not to get hurt or do anything stupid for the next few weeks because we don't have any health insurance while I am changing jobs."

I assured him that not only could he trust his 18-year-old "adult" son to act in a proper manner, but that I would be extra careful in the uncovered period.

I don't think it was even 24 hours after they left that the incident happened.

My very good friend, and drummer in my band, Bob Malinky had been dating this girl named Michelle Forst. She was a nice person... wonder what happened to her. Anyway... Bob and I were over at her house and he had his parent's station wagon. Him and Michelle got into the car and were going somewhere. I was standing in the street next to it. All of the windows were down.
What happened next happened in a split second.

Bob jammed the gas pedal and the car took off. Without thinking, I grabbed ahold of the car frame between the driver's window and the back seat window. I remember thinking that I would probably just flutter along the side of the car like a flag or something.

The problem was, and still is, that I am heavier than a flag. Back then I was 160 pounds heavier than a standard U.S. flag. I didn't flutter at all... I dragged.

For some reason I felt that I needed to hang on. And I did for a while. However this resulted in me being dragged down the asphalt street grinding away my jeans on my left side and my shirt, and turning my left side into 90/10 ground beef.

Ground beef with gravel in it that is.

It wasn't more than 5 minutes after that that I was in Fairview Hospital's emergency room. With an oozing abrasion on my left side.

For that day, and for several days after, that was most certianly my Boo Boo De Jour.

I remember calling my mom from the hospital... and telling her that I had hurt myself. I remember explaining it in such a way that didn't make me look like as much of an idiot as I apparently AM. I got my dose of sympathy from my Mommy and left it to her to tell my dad that there would be an uncovered medical expense incurred while he was without health insurance coverage. What a great mom.