Transferred from my old blog: Death by Coca Cola

April 27, 2004

Just in case you're wondering what effect my jetlag-insomnia is having on my caffeine habit, I'm still managing to postpone my first Diet Coke of the day until 11 am. If you knew me a year ago at the height of my thesis writing, you'd know I was consuming my first Diet Coke no more than 10 minutes after getting out of bed, and the second about 2 hours later, the third and fourth (on a bad day) would be sometime in the afternoon.

That just reminded me of something that happened (or almost happened to me) while I was back in Sydney. I was crossing a road in the centre of the city, at a corner that is notorious for drivers not looking where they are going (Broadway and Bay Street, fo you Sydney-siders). So I had a green light to cross the road and I crossed. But as I reached about half way across the intersection, all of a sudden I heard the brakes of a very large truck being slammed on. I quickly ran to the other side of the road, then I turned to see who was trying to kill me. It turned out to be a Coca Cola truck!
Now, I hadn't thought about it before, but if I was one of those people that believe that everyone's death is set in fate, then being hit by a Coca Cola truck surely has to be my way to die. Only I didn't die (obviously), so now what? Will there be another Coca Cola truck in my future? Or what if I get hit by a Pepsi truck? Does it mean that I would have to survive, or if I am killed by the Pepsi truck, does that mean it had mistaken me for someone else who looks like me (Oh no! look out Rhonda!). I couldn't even contemplate the thought of the truck that kills me carrying Dr. Pepper or Sprite or something.

That's enough of that, I'm going to finish my 11 am can of Diet Coke.