I'm finishing this column after nearly having to do so from a hospital bed.

I made a quick trip to Walmart at lunchtime last week, where, if I'd taken one more careless step into a traffic lane in its parking lot, I would have been nailed.

I can easily get to and from Walmart in 30 minutes from my house, since El Dorado is a 10-minute town. I usually don't shop during my lunch hour. However, I was fixing lunch for my wife Vertis, and we were out of Blue Bell vanilla ice cream, her favorite.

This shopping visit didn't go as planned.

I had trouble with self-checking out when the register wouldn't take my debit card. I had to get help, which took some time, so I was in a hurry to get back home. So I hurried across the parking lot, pushing my basket of groceries. I tossed my purchases in the back seat of my car, rushed across a traffic lane while pushing my basket, gave the basket a push into its holding area, and started back across the lane to my car.

Just as I started to step into the lane, out of the corner of my eye I saw a movement and hesitated. One........

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