It used to be that if someone said "Jeff got in a car accident," it usually meant that Jeff was dead or disabled for life. Today, it simply means that Jeff is

It used to be that if someone said "Jeff got in a car accident," it usually meant that Jeff was dead or disabled for life. Today, it simply means that Jeff is going to be 45 minutes late for work. Since I lived in the "surely dead" era, I still react that way if someone mentions someone getting in a wreck. People must assume I'm upset over Jeff's surely totaled car (something that didn't always happen in the olden days).