Driving
So, my friend Lauren took me out for my first driving session. It really wasn't a lesson so much, since I had a pretty good handle on the basics, as it was just trying to get comfortable behind the wheel. Which I started to, but it's clearly going to take a lot of repetition to make it natural, but I think I probably started off a lot better than most beginner's, I think. Everybody knows that first time drivers tend to be a little (or a lot) jerky. And there was a bit of that from me at the start, but in about 10 minutes I thought I had pretty good control of the gas and the brake, once i figured out the sensitivity of the pedals. I wasn't entirely comfortable with the car the entire time, but I imagine that'll come pretty soon.
Lauren's car is a Saturn and she didn't opt for all the amenitites so it was a pretty standard car, but it handled very nicely. After 40 minutes I think I had a decent grasp of braking, acceleration, and turning, left and right. We practiced in the Cheltenham High School parking lot, so there were few cars, and I did have an encounter with two, which mainly consisted of me stopping and letting them by.
Really, the big thing about the experience was my impatience in learning, and a few hours later, the desire to do it again. Which is good, it means that driving will not be a chore for me, and hopefully, it means that it'll get the hang of it sooner rather than later.
While it's clear that I still have a long way to go, with lots of practice, I think I should be ready to take my test in January, though that may prove to be overly optimistic depending on circumstances. If I could swing doing a session every other day or something, that'd be ideal. Unfortunately Lauren's not going to be around for the next couple of weeks, because of business, so I'll have to figure out something else.
I looked into lessons, but my schedule and the expense may not be beneficial, but we'll see. Anyway, hopefully, I'll have another session soon, because I want to master this as quickly as possible, because sitting at the edge of the horizon, is what everyone has been telling me for years: freedom and independence. And as the SEPTA disaster looms ever closer, it now has become a tantalizing, siren's call.
Lauren's car is a Saturn and she didn't opt for all the amenitites so it was a pretty standard car, but it handled very nicely. After 40 minutes I think I had a decent grasp of braking, acceleration, and turning, left and right. We practiced in the Cheltenham High School parking lot, so there were few cars, and I did have an encounter with two, which mainly consisted of me stopping and letting them by.
Really, the big thing about the experience was my impatience in learning, and a few hours later, the desire to do it again. Which is good, it means that driving will not be a chore for me, and hopefully, it means that it'll get the hang of it sooner rather than later.
While it's clear that I still have a long way to go, with lots of practice, I think I should be ready to take my test in January, though that may prove to be overly optimistic depending on circumstances. If I could swing doing a session every other day or something, that'd be ideal. Unfortunately Lauren's not going to be around for the next couple of weeks, because of business, so I'll have to figure out something else.
I looked into lessons, but my schedule and the expense may not be beneficial, but we'll see. Anyway, hopefully, I'll have another session soon, because I want to master this as quickly as possible, because sitting at the edge of the horizon, is what everyone has been telling me for years: freedom and independence. And as the SEPTA disaster looms ever closer, it now has become a tantalizing, siren's call.
posted by Serge at 11/27/2004 08:32:00 PM
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