After I got up, worked a bit, caught up on some news, I walked the dog. Then, I hailed a cab for the short drive down to the scooter shop. I told them about my accident and that we needed to pick up my scooter. This is the one shop that I have dealt with for four years. They are very dependable and have picked me up many times before whenever my scooter broke down.
Yesterday, after I had spent 2 hours on the sofa, I got up. The blood rushed to my legs and to my wounds. The pain became almost overwhelming, but I managed to hobble to the dining table. Then, I started to feel as I would lose consciousness. My eyesight was graying, and sounds were muffled. I was also dizzy. Once I was back down, it was OK, but it was still an interesting experience.
They told me that they would call me later, as the truck was going to be available only tonight. At 5PM, they called and I went back to see them. They had already lent me a scooter. The drive was pretty short. The scooter’s front end was completely gone. The back end looked better, but all of the plastic and stuff was destroyed. I wasn’t looking forward to what they would have to say. My guess was that the scooter, Blue Shelly, was a write-off.
That’s what they told me when I arrived at the shop. They were nice enough to help me out with the police. This time, Jackie came along. She translated for me. They said that I needed to go make a police statement and we made plans to go there for 9PM. The offending driver had a wedding and would be at the police station at 10PM in order to settle this. In Taiwan, things don’t function as they do in the US or Canada. The parties involved in an accident have to negotiate to come to a mutual agreement, or the matter will go to court.
I was not looking forward to this, as the last time that this had happened it was an ordeal. Also, I was on meds and had trouble moving around. Anyway, I went home, relaxed, and then got ready to leave. The drive to the police station was short. The other driver had already made his statement. I made mine. It was a cut and dry case of the other driver being at fault. Making the statement took an hour. This time, I had Jackie with me and she translated the whole thing. It was a lot easier.
Then, the driver arrived. I didn’t feel like talking to him or acknowledging him. Initially, it came out that the car wasn’t his and that it had incurred $2,700 USD of damages. They wanted me to pay for this. I told them that I was a poor student and I had no money. Clearly, it was his fault. He drove his car into me. He didn’t break. In fact, he only braked a little bit after he hit me. This was made evident from the accident scene photos.
I was getting worked up because he was trying to lie or to place the blame on me. I started swearing and gesticulating angrily at him. It was his fault that I was in the hospital, his fault that I had trouble walking, his fault that I had no scooter anymore. WTF.
The police came and took him to the side to talk with him. The cops were on my side since I wasn’t the guilty party. They told him to basically settle this with me, or if it went to court, he would end up paying a lot of money to me because it was his fault.
That’s when he came back and said that I didn’t need to pay him anything and that he would replace my scooter with another one, of similar value. From what they told me, my guy would be going to the police impound lot with the driver and he would pick out a good replacement. Even though I trust the guy fully, I plan on telling him exactly what I want, depending on what’s available. I could probably end up with a more recent scooter.
It worked out well. I have been driving around a lot more in recent weeks. School has started once more, so I go to NTNU at least three times a week. I also work in Hsinchuang now and Banciao, so I am accumulating more miles. I was thinking how I would need a better ride in a couple of months. I also plan on getting brand new motorcycle gear. The gear that I have is from SBK and it’s totally shitty. It’s falling apart and has been for a few years. The gloves are the worst. Never buy SBK. This time around, I’ll get some stronger gear from a brand name. Sure, it will probably cost $500-700 USD, but at least it will keep me safe.
memoirs on a rainy day 
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