My mom called me to tell me my dad totalled his car and sent a couple people to hospital (he's absolutely fine, they're... also fine, I think?). The main problem is of course the fact that my folks live on such a perpetually razor-thin margin of bankruptcy and utter destitution that who knows where this will put them (it's insurance companies that get sued here, not the individual, but his rates will still be astronomical now, he has to buy another car, etc.).
I think the shittiest part is that I was reminded once again that the telephone is a malevolent and evil device. We don't have friends that call to hang out anymore, no one's going to call and tell us we're getting a pile of money, relatives don't even call to check on us, no, the ringing of my phone only presages deaths, misery, and financial ruin. When I hear that goddamned fucking phone ring, I only feel the cold claws of fear; the sickness in my gut that knows all too well that absolutely nothing good is going to come of my answering.
