Adventures in Moving

Part 1: Mazda vs. Deer

On Saturday morning I packed up the car, said my goodbyes to my wonderful hosts for the past 3 weeks (Thanks again Matt and Jai!), and started on my drive back "home" to Corpus Christi. We had a new apartment waiting for us and Dereck would be arriving at the airport around 5:00! .
It was a beautiful day which was a relief since I made the 5 hour drive to Del Rio weeks before in pouring rain. A little about the geography of South Texas: Del Rio is on the western border of Texas and sits right next to Mexico. Corpus Christi is on the eastern border and sits on the Gulf. The major roadway brings me through San Antonio and almost splits the distance to each city in half. The hiway from Del Rio to San Antonio is for the most part, a 2 lane road with a shoulder on each side, which then butts directly up to the vast desert brush. When I drove to Del Rio while Dereck was stationed there I always made sure to leave so I could arrive before dark because of the deer. They came out around dusk and were all over the roadways. Especially between the 30-40 mile stretch between Bracketville and Del Rio. Being that it was 9:30am, I wasn't too concerned about the deer and the visibility was great. Here is a photo I found online that shows the hiway outside of Bracketville:

I was just leaving Bracketville and paying close attention to the speed limits (the cops like to catch you entering and leaving towns at the edge of where the speed limits change) so I was staying around the 50mph limit until I saw the signs change. Out of the corner of my vision, off to the left, I see a brown blurr and the next thing I know I hear and feel a large THUWMP on the front of the car! Then I see a brown blurr fly to the right. I slow down and pull over, immediately panicked that I just totaled the front end of our car and will not be able to get back to Corpu Christi that evening. I get out of the car and brace myself for the worst as I make my way around the front of the car. I am shocked to see nothing but a mangled license plate, and behind it the grill has a few cracks in it... but still connected sturdily to the car. I make my way around to the right fender, and I see where the bumper attaches to the fender is a bit out of place, probably about 1/2 an inch. I see some clear liquid splatter up around the front right wheel well, but no blood or guts. I bend down and look under the car and don't see any fluids leaking or anything that looks out of place. Its now when I realize I managed to hit a deer (and judging by its stiff and lifeless body about 30 feet away, killed it), and have no major damage, or (thank God!) injury whatsoever. Holy cow! Here are a few pictures of the car.

About this time I see a man approaching me from a business down the road a ways. He was very nice and asked me if I was okay and everything. He also gave him his name/address/phone in case the insurance wanted some sort of witness, since I had no major damage there was no need to call the cops or any tow truck for assistance.

I calmed myself down after the scare and got back into the car to continue on my drive. I had an intense grip on the wheel for probably about 30-40 miles until I got out of "deer country" and where the hiway turned into 4 lanes for the rest of the way to San Antonio.

Mazda vs. Deer, Winner: MAZDA!

Part 2:  Mazda vs. Border Patrol German Shepherd

So, while I am still a bit shaken up and white knuckled on the wheel, I reach the Border Patrol checkpoint that is between Bracketville and the next "major" town of Uvalde. This is a routine stop that all drivers are required to take when driving east from the Mexican border. Usually they have some German Shepherds that sniff around your car while you talk with an officer. They typically ask if you are a US Citizen and who is traveling in the car, so I was familiar with the drill. While the officer was asking me where I was headed and why (Corpus Christi, where I live, just staying with friends at the base in Del Rio) another officer with a dog circled around the car. Marty was in my front seat, being a good dog (as always). This usually is never an issue since the border patrol dogs are trained to sniff the car, not be distracted by dogs. All of a sudden the German Shepherd lunges at the window and lets out a loud and vicious bark. Marty jumped in my direction (as far as his doggy seat belt would allow) and both me and the officer at my window where quite startled. The handler pulled his dog off the car and walked away while the officer at my window apologized for his behavior and sent us on our way. I noticed some drool and dirt on the window from where the dog was and didn't think much of it until I arrived in Corpus Christi. The rest of my drive was uneventful and I arrived in good time to Corpus, where it was still sunny and mid-60s. After I got checked in at the office I moved into our new condo. While unpacking the car I took a few seconds to wipe the dried drool and dirt off of the window. I then realized that there are 3 scratches in the glass of the window about 3+ inches long each. That darn dog actually scratched into the glass! Good thing I had that window up or that could have been Marty's face! Unfortunately, this glass is nowhere near where any of the damage from the deer is, so it can't be fixed with our insurance claim and will have to come out of our pocket. I don't even know how to fix scratches in glass! So the poor Mazda had quite the day. Here is a picture of the window.

Mazda vs. Border Patrol German Shepherd, Winner: Border Patrol German Shepherd.
Well I guess you win some and you loose some! At least I arrived safely and in one piece, and so did Dereck. He was glad to be home and we are settling into our new place like we've been here for months already. Its good to have him back and the excitement put behind me!