Half a Life: A Memoir by Darin Strauss

My blog has moved to www.satisfyingmycuriosity.com.  If you've enjoyed this blog, please check my new site out for other interesting comments on culture, travel, book reviews, and music.


In the early 1970's my boyfriend, soon to be husband and later my ex, and I were coming home from a "dance" at about 2am.  Now, where I'm from, there aren't any nightclubs or discos.  If you wanted to go hear music and dance, you went to one of a myriad of VFW or Legion Halls or one of the many "dance halls" owned by the local Catholic churches for their church picnics, which invariably had a "dance".  And these roads are all unlit and two lane.  My boyfriend was driving.  As we began to crest a hill, right in the middle of the road was an accident that had not been moved out of the way.  They had no lights on.  We hit the accident which propelled one of the  cars into one of the drivers who had been standing in front of it.  He was seriously injured and since this was pre-seat belts, I hit the windshield and was also taken to the hospital.  Luckily for me, I escaped with just a bad gash on the forehead.  Later, the guy who was seriously injured was given a DUI and fined by a judge. 6 months later my boyfriend finds out he is being sued by the DUI guy and who was his attorney?  The judge who gave him the DUI.   He had some brain damage and was suing for future lost wages.  He wanted  $75,000.  I remember thinking, that's what he thinks he'll earn in a life time, $75,000?  It's likely the attorney felt that was all he could get.  I really don't remember what the insurance company paid him but it wasn't $75,000.  We were very lucky in that there were no fatalities.



  First Lady Laura Bush and writer Darin Strauss weren't so fortunate.  Read more...