In the old days driving somewhere was my relaxing time. The kids were buckled up in their car seats behind me and the radio allowed me the freedom to tune out their idle noises and chattering. The kids didn't pay any attention to the route we were taking and certainly not to my skills as a driver. All that has changed now that my daughter is nearing that age to receiving her driver's license. Now I am being judged.
When I first learned to drive it was at school in a driver's education class my sophomore year of high school. We had to log so many hours of classroom time watching films of the horrors that can come with being behind the wheel. We visited the shop class where we stared at the inner workings of a vehicle and watched a flat tire changing. We trooped outside of the school to watch the local police force demonstrate what an accident can do to a dummy. Only then did we get to move to the driving range, located at my school between the football field and the street. There we had to demonstrate basic skills such as braking and accelerating before we were taken out on to the road. A good thing for a kid who had only been behind the wheel of a car on her father's lap or when she snuck into the car to play without her parent's permission. I was a cautious learner, following the two hands rule; left hand at ten o'clock, right hand at two o'clock. I buckled up religiously and followed the speed limit. I hated driving in rain and snow and many times allowed my father to drop me off for my college classes so I could avoid driving in inclement weather.
But as I aged so did my comfort level with driving. While I'm still labeled the "Grandma Driver" by my brother family and friends, I'm finding out now, via my teenage daughter, that I have picked up quite a few habits that might be frowned upon by my former Driver's Ed teacher. They are as follows:
1. Using my IPhone - This was something we didn't have to worry about back in my day, but now everyone has a cell phone, and we must not miss a call or text. While I know using my phone while driving is bad, bad, bad I still use it. I tried to stop texting while driving, but there always seemed to be some circumstance where I felt the need to read the text, or worse, text back. Of course, it is wrong. I'm an advocate for outlawing the practice, but right now in Florida it is allowed. Do I want my daughter to do this while driving? Absolutely not! Talking on the phone too is another no no in my book. Is that call really all that important? The other day I left home without my phone, and while I panicked some thinking Madison might need me for something, it was an actual relief not to be so responsible. Unfortunately, the only reason I have a phone is for emergencies so having it with me, whether in the car or not, is necessary. Teens are suppose to turn them off when driving, and I think that is going to have to be my next resolution soon.
2. Running through yellow lights - I learned that a yellow light meant "caution" and to slow down. A yellow meant a red was to follow so if you were able to stop you stopped. If you were too far through, you slowed and used caution through the light. My Dad use to tell the story of when he was a traveling salesman on the road. He drove through a town and went through the light on a yellow. A patrol car pulled him over and the officer ticketed him, lecturing him about stopping when he saw the light turn yellow. Two towns later my Dad stopped as a light turned yellow and another officer signaled him to the curb where he lectured him about slowing down and proceeding through a yellow light so that he didn't cause the person behind him to crash into his rear. He too was going to write my father a ticket, but reconsidered once he saw the first ticket. I've always loved that story because this is the problem I faced when I moved to Florida. In Indiana we stopped for yellow unless we were directly under the light when it changed. My first driving experience in Florida I was tapped on the bumper when I stopped at a yellow, and I soon learned that if I didn't want to get rear-ended I needed to blow through that light on yellow. In the past year, our county has tried to put a stop to this practice, but it is a hard thing to get under control. No excuse my daughter says.
Getting irate at other drivers - I always considered myself low key in this area. I didn't think I yelled at other drivers, or if I did it was very rare. My husband and my friends Kelly and Jyoti are the crazy yellers, not me. Not so according to my daughter. She says that the things I yell at other drivers makes it worse then how many times I do it. She says it takes away my concentration.
3. Speeding - I'm putting this category down because recently many of the roads that I travel to and from school and grocery have stuck out those electronic signs that tell you how fast you are going and then it flashes "slow down" over and over as you pass. Both my children are always looking out the window as I pass these signs, and while I'd like to mention the 5 miles over the speed limit rule it really isn't anything I want my daughter to know about or do.
4. Using my elbows to drive - Before you get carried away know that I did this yesterday while blowing my nose. Yes, I do this when I am in desperate need of a good nose blow and for that I need two hands and so I used my elbows to steer for all of 5 seconds while I blew. My youngest daughter who was sitting in the passenger seat was horrified, and for fifteen minutes I was lectured.
The thing about driving for years is that you develop almost a nonchalant way of cruising the streets, secure in the those years of experience and knowledge. Only when an accident occurs or your almost of driving age daughter points out your faults do you realize that it might just be time for a refresher course; that you just might not be doing what you should. It is one of the things I'm enjoying doing as a mother. Learning again with my kids.
No comments:
Post a Comment