FireLink

The one call that changed "my" life.....was the dispatch of my F.D. crew to the scene of "my" single vehicle MVA, 4x rollover.  I'd just spent 10 hrs. working on the remodel of my new home, hadn't eatten all day, came back to my old house, showered, had 3 beers, and received a phone call while waiting for my dinner to cook that someone I knew needed a ride..... a few miles roundtrip.   I thought nothing of it.....got in the car (fourtunately not in my truck, would have surely killed me) and headed down the mountain towards town.  1/2 mile away from home, I lost control  of the car on a curve and that was the beginning of the "rest of my life".  For my "lack of thinking",  I was charged with a "wet/reckless" on my driving record.  Most heart-breaking, I received permanent damage to my lowback and the onset of a seizure disorder and Fibromyalgia /Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.  My beloved firefighting career, which took me so long to obtain, ended due to my injuries/health at the age of 34.  After 16 (yes, 16) years of drinking, that night was the last night I had a drink, and thank you God for sparing my life.  I live with the  fact and memory that   "I" ended my career with my thoughtless-ness everytime I hear a siren, see emergency vehicles responding to calls, pass-by incident scenes, and I no longer have a scanner in the house.  I only share "my" humiliating story to those of you here in the hopes that some of you will think about what you do before you do it.  Some actions you choose to take in your life are irreversible.