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User Info	Driving and dieing?; entered at 2017-06-21 15:48:09
Naomi Posts: 12 Registered: 2017-05-27 Dallas Texas	Driving, For all of us in the world it is a bit synonymous with freedom. So as soon as I turned 18 I immediately registered to take my licence exam. Because there was usually such a long waiting list in my city at the time (months), I thought it was OK to go ahead before even taking a single lesson. So the lessons start (driving school, dual command cars), small Fiat (=death trap), manual transmission. My father won't let me close to his car, don't even ask. But it seems to go well, and I assume I'll do OK after 8 hours or so (finances are tight). But for whatever reason, slow summer perhaps, I am asked to come and take the exam after only 6 hours behind the wheel. Big city, plenty of cars, narrow streets, and a request to parallel park nose down on a hill. I am extremely nervous, my knee is "almost" shaking on the clutch and the accelerator, I drive too fast. We do not hit anything, I do not stall, but I am given a big fail by the instructor (who is sweating - may be summer?) for "dangerous driving". I was in medical school at the time, and so he felt appropriate to comment that he could see my point of view since I would get the casualties back as business... Frankly, that had to be fair, I cannot even imagine how he felt during that "drive". In the end I did get that license after another 2 hours driving (on budget). Nobody wanted to ride with me for the first few months. But I did not drive much until coming to the US, and retaking a licence exam. The car: another Fiat (so nobody could say I did not have "skin in the game") fun but as safe as riding a bike with a cardboard box on your head. Did a lot of practice by myself in empty parking lots and deserted streets on Sunday mornings. Also learned all I could about the car so could avoid ever being stranded, and I would know exactly what is wrong with it even if I have no intention to fix it myself. Still having fun driving, but you are right Sarah there are some long stretches in Texas(such as from and around Dallas) where driving is dreadful. My favorite state to drive: Washington State. 2017-06-21 15:48:09