Two days ago, I left my phone in a taxi that took me to my hotel in Cusco, Peru. Alex and I got off the taxi, started checking in, and I realized that my phone was gone. Alex sprinted back to find the driver, but he had already left.
Today I was ATVing up a hilly road to get to Rainbow Mountain, this mountain that lives up to its name. I was okay for the first forty minutes or so, then I somehow crashed into a rock on the side of the road. The ATV flipped over, crushing me. For a few seconds, I thought I might be dying. I tried to push the ATV off of me, but it was too heavy, and the right side of my body was in extreme pain. At some point, I noticed that a weight was being lifted off of me, and I saw a familiar pair of pants. Turns out Alex had lifted the ATV off of me.
The previous two paragraphs are two extreme examples of a class of behavior I'm known to exhibit, called complete dumbass derp moves. I am extremely chaotic, and not in a viral-YouTuber-get-30k-in-a-story-time-video way. I somehow never check my surroundings or employ critical reasoning in everyday situations. I show up to a room, and it instantly becomes messy. I go to restaurants and bars and classrooms and leave a island's worth of possessions there. I show up on a fucking mountain, and I get crushed by an ATV.
Up until a few days ago, I generally enjoyed being chaotic. There are benefits. You have crazy stories, there's a warm security in being clueless and innocent all the time, Alex says my derpiness makes him feel comfortable around me. But derpiness is coming at a cost. I GOT CRUSHED BY A FUCKING ATV DAMMIT. AND ALSO BROKE THE ATV, SO I HAD TO PAY EXTRA MONEY THERE TOO. AND LOST MY PHONE.
Anyways, in today's edition of "Valerie is growing up," Valerie has discovered the benefit of being more intentional in her day to day life, namely NOT PAYING A BUNCH OF MONEY AND NOT RISKING BREAKING BONES.
Managed to crack some smiles (and maybe you ribs).
I hope you are okay Valerie! Being crushed by an ATV definitely must suck. And losing your phone :(