When I was around five years old, my parents decided it was time for a family camping adventure in New Mexico. I still can’t fathom what prompted this decision, considering we weren’t exactly the outdoorsy type. However, they were eager to dive headfirst into the wilderness, pitching tents in the mountains and soaking up the beauty of nature. In hindsight, it’s clear why this was our only camping expedition.
Our zealous journey began with a flight from Southern California to New Mexico, but of course, things went awry. A storm caused significant delays, and by the time we arrived in Santa Fe, it was nearly midnight. After what felt like an eternity at the baggage claim, we discovered that half of our luggage—most notably our tent and many camping essentials—had been sent onward to the next destination. With no intention of splurging on a hotel, my parents opted to embrace a bit of “roughing it” for the night and headed up the mountain regardless. Thankfully, the rental car office was open around the clock, and we managed to secure a brand-new vehicle with barely seven miles on the odometer. Little did we know, those would be the luckiest seven miles of our trip.
Navigating by the light of the moon, my parents reached the campsite. Lacking a tent, they decided to sleep outside in the two sleeping bags while I curled up in the backseat of the car to stay warm.
In the dead of night, I awoke to find myself alone in the dark, strange car and utterly panicked, realizing my mom was nowhere in sight. To make matters worse, my parents discovered they had locked the keys inside the car.
As my anxiety escalated, my mom attempted to coach me through unlocking the doors, but the high-tech features of the early ’90s vehicle were beyond my grasp. Eventually, she recognized that breaking a window was the only option. She instructed my stepdad, Mark, to find a rock.
Mark, a gentle soul, often became flustered in stressful situations, and this was one of those moments. My mom shouted for me to duck and cover my head as he prepared to break the window. In a fit of panic, he hurled what could only be described as a small boulder through the back window, which shattered spectacularly and sent glass flying everywhere.
With both rear windows now destroyed, my cozy sleeping spot was gone, and all of us were understandably shaken. My parents decided it was best to abandon the camp and find a motel. However, navigating down the mountain in pitch darkness proved challenging. With the moon obscured by clouds, Jim made a wrong turn, causing us to slide off the road and into a shallow ditch. In the process, a low branch cracked the front windshield. My mom internally groaned, thinking, at least it wasn’t worse.
Mark then attempted to reverse out of the ditch but struggled with tires that felt like they were spinning on wet leaves. He opened the door to check the wheel’s traction and slammed the gas pedal. The car shot backward, and in a disastrous turn of events, flew past a stump that ripped the door clean off. They stuffed the door in the trunk, and somehow, we made it down the mountain with just a few more minor mishaps.
As dawn broke, we rolled into the rental car lot. My mom still remembers the look of shock and disbelief on the rental agent’s face as he emerged from the trailer, hand on his forehead, taking in the state of the car he had checked out to us just hours before. The vehicle, now with about 30 miles on the odometer, was a wreck—front windshield cracked, no driver’s side door, two shattered rear windows, and a rear tire riding on its rim. It looked as though it had survived a riot.
The agent accepted the keys in silence and handed over our paperwork. After paying the deductible, we were free to go. The lesson learned? Camping might not be for everyone—but more importantly, always get the rental insurance. This experience was certainly one for the books!
For more engaging stories, check out our other posts on home insemination, like this one about at-home intracervical insemination kits. If you’re interested in the science behind it, you can learn more about artificial insemination here.
Summary:
In this humorous recounting of a disastrous family camping trip, a series of unfortunate events led to broken windows, a missing car door, and a rental car that looked like it had been through a war zone. Despite the chaos, the family learned valuable lessons about camping and insurance.
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