Worse. →[More:]So my dad wrecked the car.

He wasn't supposed to be driving, of course (we were considering taking away that "job" even before his surgery, as he's had some close calls already). We had been keeping the keys away from him since the other day. My mother had also been rationing his Vicodin because of his self-medicating.

When he felt he needed another dose in the middle of the night, he decided to use his latest discovery -- that pharmacies can give out "emergency" rations. He dug through my mom's purse for her keys and went for a drive.

Apparently he got to the pharmacy without incident, but then got lost on the way back. He turned north instead of south, and just kept going -- ten miles out of town, in the dark and fog.

I think he was actually trying to turn back around by going around a small triangle (a hundred yards or so). But he took it at speed, hit some gravel, and spun out. The van traveled around 100 feet sideways. The front passenger-side fender hit three signs including a stop sign.

The rear bumper came within inches of a telephone pole.

Somehow the van stayed upright when it jumped the curb, and despite the damage, it ran -- so he proceeded north where he was intercepted by a local cop. (Probably because the steering was wrecked and he couldn't keep it straight.)

GMap

I had about two hours of sleep and had come back onto my computer to watch the Obama, Clinton, and McCain speeches from yesterday. I had actually heard the van leave, but the tenant we have also has a Chrysler so the engines sound the same, and they're both geriatric nurses' aides so they have erratic hours. Even if I'd known he'd left I suppose there isn't much I could have done -- he would have been long gone by the time I got my keys and pants. I suppose a 911 lookout had a small chance of getting him stopped.

The city cop must have looked me up in the computer because he banged on my door after he couldn't raise anyone at home (other side of a driveway). I thought at first it might be an issue with our rentals -- it usually has been....

I was just barely able to wake my mom when the arresting officer called with the details.

My mother and I drove up there and she filled out "responsibility" forms. He has an OWI for being on meds (the Vicodin was probably worn off, but almost all his meds have drowsiness indicators). They also found a bottle of pills he kept for my nieces (with ADHD and bipolar), so that was confiscated as evidence even though he probably didn't touch them. There's also a hit and run charge along with property damage from the county sheriff. (Complicated matters: my mom works for the county social services unit and is actually a sworn probation officer.)

I was able to drive the van back, warily, with the flashers on. It has a shimmy like nobody's business and is probably totaled.

We're taking him to urgent care as soon as possible to make sure he isn't injured in any serious way. He might have a cracked rib, but claims it's the same thing as his hernia on the other side six inches down. We're scared to give him any non-OTC pain meds without a doctor's OK at this point.

My mom cried several times beginning at the police station. He's been belligerent and free with his blame -- for instance, it's our fault, ultimately, for keeping control of his pills. He's also completely oblivious.

The crazy thing is this is almost exactly what happened to his brother who came to stay with us two years ago. The only difference is that his brother was full of a liter of gin when he had his incident on the other side of our block. We "knew" then that somehow my dad would end up the same way, because he was already showing memory lapses, but had no idea the timetable would be so soon.