Last night I was lying in bed and I started thinking about funny stories involving me tripping or falling. What started out as one or two incidents turned into a good-sized list of memorable trips or falls. So here is my top 10 list:
1. Tripping over Lisa because we were wearing nightgowns.
When I was seven, my sister Lisa and I both had on nightgowns that we got for Christmas or something. We were running down the narrow hall to our rooms to go to bed. Lisa was in front and stepped on the hem of her nightgown and fell. The light was off and I was running close behind her so instead of stopping, all I could do was try to hurdle her. It doesn't work so well in a dress. We both were down and laughing.
2. Falling off footboard of bed because arms and legs were pulled inside shirt.
When I was little, when it was cold I would pull my arms and sometimes my legs up into my oversized nightshirts. One time I was sitting on the inch-wide footboard of a bed and I was cold so I pulled my arms and legs in. A minute later, I tipped over (away from the bed) and my arms and legs were stuck inside my shirt so I couldn't catch myself. Now that is a real cannonball!
3. Flipping out of hammock.
When I was about 13, Andrew (brother) and Nate(cousin) and I were playing with our big hammock in the back yard. I don't quite remember what we were trying to do, but I had the hammock bunched up and was sitting on it while they pushed me really high. I think the idea was to jump off like on a regular swing. The problem with the plan is that unlike a regular swing, you only have the seat to grab onto and not higher handles to make sure you don't flip off backwards during the back swing. Completely unexpecting, I flipped over, managed to keep a hold on the hammock and was dragged along the grass all sprawled out. Turns out a lot of people were watching from inside the house at the moment.
4. Wearing a tall box and playing Marco Polo or Blind Man's Bluff.
We were playing a game in the 2nd Apt. and it involved the person who is It wearing a long skinny box over them that reached down to about mid calf. Then it was a game of blind and armless Blind Man's Bluff or Marco Polo. When I was It I went to 'sit' on the couch, not realizing that I was turned 90 degrees. Thinking I was leaning back onto the couch, I ended up falling straight to the ground. It was a shock.
5. Repeatedly getting tripped while pacing the kitchen and rehearsing for a speech.
I was attempting to practice a presentation I had to give in 5th or 6th grade and I was walking circles around the kitchen table and island. Andrew was bothering me and watching basketball in there and tripped me while I was passing him by simply sticking out his foot. Being very focused, I got right back up (with probably only a tongue-out or a glare) and continued practicing and pacing. The very next time around, he tripped me in the very same exact way and I fell again.
6. Big black garbage can falling on me and trapping me under it.
When I was about 15 or 16 I was raking up some of the millions of small pine needles in the front yard. I put a lot of them into the black garbage can and was ready to roll the can back to the backyard. It was heavy and off-balance and I fell and it fell too, trapping my legs underneath it. I tried squirming, lifting, anything, but I stuck tight. I yelled 'Help! Help!' until a man I didn't know came running over from the neighbor's house. He lifted the garbage can on me and freed me. Thank you nice man!
7. Getting pushed off the bunk bed when not expecting it.
I think it was Jessica who pushed me off. A few of us kids were up on the top bunk and all of a sudden I was under the desk. Accidental? Maybe. Completely unexpected? Definitely.
8. Rolling off the car hood accidentally.
I was helping set up a drink station for Top of Utah Marathon with the P City Youth Council and we got set up and were waiting for runners. It was cold so I sat on the hood of my car across the street in the sun. One second I was happily soaking up the rays and the next I was trying not to eat the dirt from the road shoulder. I still don't know what happened but I rolled off that hood onto the ground very fast. P.S. Everyone laughed.
9. Tripping and being tripped while going up the stairs.
A classic move in my family. To this day it is dangerous to walk up the stairs directly in front of a sibling for fear of having your ankles grabbed.
10. Almost falling out of the fort tree.
Getting a little desperate for a #10 here, this is only an almost fall. Only because I managed to hold onto a precarious tree branch and dangle there. It wasn't that dire of a situation because there was another branch I could climb onto but it's amazing how hard laughing makes the simplest of things. Anyways, eventually I got safely to the other branch.
Honorable Mention:
Kindergarten Concussion
There was a pull-up bar that everyone stood in line to take turns jumping to from another part of the playground equipment. I was good at this but this time my hands slipped and I fell straight onto my back and was dazed for a good while.
Tripper on Tramp
Another recurring classic. Whether it is 3 people or 15 people, tripping and being tripped makes for a fun trampoline game.
Good times, good times. Thanks for remembering with me.
