| All seventeen-year-olds know everything. Just ask | | | | right. So I pulled out and looked at him for |
| them. I had two weeks to learn a twelve page | | | | approval at my wonderful driving skills when he |
| pamphlet on the rules of driving and I actually | | | | asked me when I planned to signal to the rest of |
| tried to learn them. Some of the instructions I | | | | the world that I was about to enter a traffic lane. |
| didn't really understand but I was reluctant to ask | | | | I apologized and signaled a right turn and turned |
| for help. Of course I thought that the driving test | | | | left.By now, sure I had flunked, I found us |
| rated higher in importance over the written test, | | | | stopped on a steep grade at a red light. Not |
| so I bugged my Dad to take me out on the road | | | | knowing how to slip the clutch, I stalled the engine |
| for a lesson. Dad was a real Nazi when it came to | | | | with one foot on the clutch and the other on the |
| following instructions and though he didn't curse, | | | | brake. If I took my foot off the brake, we would |
| the lesson was interrupted by several orders to | | | | go sailing backwards down the hill. At this point |
| pull over and park so that he could calm down | | | | the tester suggested using the hand brake before |
| and stifle his urge to hit me.The country part was | | | | I started the car. Two aborted attempts later, |
| easy but traffic was another story. The first | | | | with a screaming engine, I finally raced across the |
| order to turn left found me in someone's | | | | intersection at about forty miles per hour. |
| driveway. Since we were already on a side | | | | Sweating, I returned the man to our starting point |
| street, Dad tried to show me how to parallel park. | | | | without him offering a word of praise.Two weeks |
| Many loud screams of "Left!, left" and "Stop!". and | | | | later I received a notice from Motor Vehicles |
| "When I say STOP I mean right now!" Anyway, | | | | passing me on the driving test but failing me on |
| this lesson | | | | the written test. The wrong answers were circled |
| was cut short when the owner of the house | | | | - parking within fifteen feet of an |
| closest to the curb asked us to practice | | | | intersection and not knowing the proper hand |
| somewhere else or he was going to call the | | | | signal for a right |
| police.For the actual test, I had to use one of my | | | | turn. To this day I'm the only one I know who |
| Dad's cars - a Kaiser Henry J with stick shift. | | | | can parallel park into a tight spot within six inches |
| Automatic transmissions were not allowed for the | | | | of the curb on the first try. Unfortunately, all |
| test. After sweating out the written test, an older | | | | parking nowadays is head on diagonal.Retired |
| gentleman asked where I was parked and we got | | | | portrait photographer just glad to get home |
| in the car. He said go to the next corner and turn | | | | safely. |