Driving a car (part 1)

Because of my article, My Dream Car, I thought of another topic but still related to cars. LOL. 

I have said before in some of my articles that I know how to drive both manual and automatic transmission. For manual, it was my mom who taught me and would let me drive before but with a professional driver beside me. For automatic, it was my friends who let me drove their cars. They know how much I wanted to drive a car so they would let me whenever we have gatherings. 

When I was in high school when my mom was teaching my brother how to drive, I also wanted to learn but they wouldn't allow me because they say that it wasn't necessary. I was so envious of my brother especially when he already had his driving lessons in a driving school. I was in college when my mom started to train me but my first driving experience was in high school with my friends. It was summer and we went to Laguna for the birthday of our friend. We stayed there for days and we only found out that one of us knew how to drive already. We were in Laguna because of her so when we saw her driving their car, we begged her to teach us. She brought us to a safe place for actual driving lessons but it was hard for me. My engine would always shut off because I still don't know how the right balance of clutch and accelerator. It is hard to explain in writing but if you know how to drive, you will now what I mean. 

So when my mom taught me, I already had a little knowledge but it was still hard. But it is really cool when you have to change gears just like in Fast and the Furious. At first I was so nervous when I had my first actual drive. My speed was ok for beginners but there was a time that I was on a hanging or an uphill road and I was on stop because the traffic light was red, I had a lot of things that was running on my mind. If there is something that I hated in driving other than traffic is hanging. It is hard to calculate the clutch and gas then you would release the hand brake and the foot brakes. I really didn't know what to do first when the light turned into green. Good thing that the car at my back wasn't too close on me. Well that is actually one rule whenever you are in a diagonal position is to not be to clowe to the car in front of you as there's a chance that it will move backward before you can move forward. I was too nervous that I already didn't want to move especially when the cars at my back where starting to honk. I was really pressured during that time but I was able to make it. 

I think it was because of that experience that is why I didn't want to drive ever again not unless I am driving an automatic transmission. It is much easier when it is automatic. You just have to place it into drive, step on the gas then you are good to go. Unlike with manual that you have to step on the clutch, change gears then step on the gas. But my mom said that there will always be a hanging in every road. And I told her that if I am rich, I am really going to look for a driver so that I wouldn't have to experience that hanging moment ever again or I will just have to buy an automatic car. Though my dad doesn't like it not because of the price difference but he says that if your car broke down in the middle of the road, it would be hard to jumpstart it and you will need someone to tow it. 

Do you know how to drive? Who taught you? Do you prefer automatic or manual? Any driving experience you can't forget? Did you enroll in a driving school? 

I don't know why they didn't enroll me in a driving school when I was in college or even when I was working. Probably they know that I would just go to the places that I want when they would officially let me drive. Now they don't have a choice but to drive me when I needed to do some errands like going to the drug store. 

Another unforgettable experience for me. My friends and I went to the party of our friend who held her party at her grandparents' house which was just a few streets away from us. My mom allowed me to bring our car since it was just inside our subsvision. We were there first so I parked in front of the house. When we were about to leave, there was already a car parked in front and back. Yes, parallel parking. The cars were too close to me that I didn't know how I would go out. I went out of the house with my friends feeling proud because I have a car but I didn't know how to get the car out. Good thing my friend knows how to drive so she was the one who drove our car. Epic fail! LOL. 

Then before we go back to our house, we decided to go to a nearby coffee shop which was along the highway and on the other side. My friend switched with me since she was scared to drive our car plus she's not that familiar with manual transmission. But before going out of the highway, there is a hanging that I would pass by. Good thing it was already past midnight so there were a few cars in our area. I struggled a little by we were able to go back to the coffee shop and back to our house safely. When we were at the coffee shop, I was thinking about the moment when I rode the car because my crush was looking at us from the terrace. Remember the cousin of my friend in my MRT story? I am referring about him. LOL. But if no one knows how to drive among my friends, I would have asked him to move our car. Flirty style. LOL. 

P.S. lead image was from a decade ago after I drove my friend's car inside our subdivision.