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S-kawa Story: "Die Hard Survivor" (Past Blog Post)

2024年10月18日 23:14

Excerpt from an email with S-kawa. (Reprint of a past blog post)
The other day, I suddenly remembered a story from when S-kawa lived in Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture, about how he was in a car accident in Yamaguchi Prefecture that totaled his car, yet he came out unscathed.
"It's amazing you were unscathed after totaling your car. Between that and your actions afterward, you're a real survivor lol"

S-kawa's reply.
"Totaling a car and coming out unscathed isn't even a heroic tale.
　It just means the car's safety features were excellent and my driving skills were inferior (lol)

　My heroic tale begins after the accident (lol)
　I was on my way back from Fukuoka to Suzuka, but because of snow, the road ahead was closed. I was forced off at some unknown mountain interchange and had to take a mountain pass where snow was falling silently. There were no shops and no houses.

　For a split second, I let my guard down, slipped, and crashed straight into the curb. The front axle snapped, and I slammed into the guardrail.

　If I had broken through the guardrail, I wouldn't have gotten away unscathed.
　That said, since the front axle was snapped, it was obviously undrivable.

　I didn't know where I was, so I couldn't call the police or a tow truck.
　For the time being, I walked through the silent darkness with snow falling silently until I could figure out where I was, and finally found a house. I contacted the police, had them contact a tow truck, and had the tow truck guy take my car, which was basically a wreck, and me, who was basically a wreck, to the town at the bottom of the pass.

　That was past 1:00 AM.
　I took a nap at a business hotel in front of the station, withdrew money at a convenience store ATM at 5:00 AM the next morning, moved to catch the first Shinkansen, took the first Shinkansen to Nagoya, took a private railway from Nagoya to Suzuka, and arrived back at the company dormitory by taxi just before noon.
　I ate lunch and went to work (lol)"

My reply.
"Sorry for the late reply, I was back home for the first time in 3 years^_^;
　That was an amazing survival story. You mentioned it lightly before, so I didn't know there was that much to it (lol)
　Cheating death at the guardrail, then finding a house, calling the police and a tow truck, plus the nap, the first Shinkansen, the first train, the taxi, and then going to work in the afternoon—you're no ordinary survivor lol
　Most people would probably take the day off work lol
　Above all, your writing style is great.
　Phrases like 'my car, which was basically a wreck, and me, who was basically a wreck' and 'in the silence where snow was falling silently' really paint a picture.
　The image of a stunned S-kawa walking through the snow looking for a house is quite the survival story (lol)
　It reminded me of the saying that God only gives us trials we can overcome."

S-kawa's reply.
"Actually, there's a punchline to that.
　I was a temporary worker at an auto factory, and a car accident is fatal—it affects the renewal of your contract.
　Immediately after the accident, I contacted my supervisor.
　Report, Communicate, Consult... the so-called 'Ho-Ren-So'.

　In this accident, there were no victims, and there was almost no damage to the curb or guardrail.
　In the police report, it was processed as a solo accident with no second party (victim).
　The next day, while I was working as if nothing had happened, my supervisor came over and called me out.

　The supervisor pressed me, asking, 'There really was no damage, right?'

　No damage? What kind of sleepy nonsense are you talking about? How rude, I thought.
　Thinking to myself that the damage was huge—my car was totaled, plus the tow truck fees and Shinkansen fare...

'The damage is just my car, the tow truck fee—plus the late-night surcharge—and my emotional scars... I suppose.'　I answered, but the supervisor didn't even laugh.

　'Who cares about that?'
　He snapped.
　'If it gets out that you had an accident, it'll affect your contract renewal... I'll bury this, so keep your mouth shut.'

　He said.

　Even though he told me to keep my mouth shut, by that time I had already earned the title of

'Die Hard'from my fellow workers (lol)　Before I started my shift that day, I had already shared my heroic tale with my coworkers (lol)

　I kept it a secret from my supervisor that I had shared the story with my coworkers, and just answered with a solemn 'Yes' (lol)"
My reply.

"When S-kawa was called by his supervisor and asked about the damage, I thought he was asking if S-kawa was injured, but I was wrong lol
　Furthermore, S-kawa's damage was huge expenses and emotional scars—a literal broken heart—and I thought the supervisor might soften up or laugh a little, but that was wrong too (lol)

　The hotel and Shinkansen costs were indeed huge damages, but the disconnect with the supervisor was quite funny ^^

　This is the first time I've heard of a rule against car accidents for those working in auto factories; I'm sure some people have had their contracts cut without knowing it. That's valuable information.

　And, I called you a survivor, but
Die Hard = hard to diefits better lol　If it's a story like this, it's truly a heroic tale, and no one would keep quiet about it, so the solemn 'Yes' was hilarious. It shows how to use appearances to your advantage."

(Reprinted from a fun article on another blog from 2013/4/13 for preservation)

*Image borrowed from cheeky_orchid948.

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S-kawa Story: "Die Hard Survivor" (Past Blog Post)

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