Correction; I had my first freak out session behind the wheel of a car and then I had my first driving lesson. Being a long time passanger has made me quite anxious and neurotic about nyc drivers and their unquestionable desire (in my mind) to run my down. They drive too fast, barely signal when they turn, they scream at you for walking, they honk if you're breathing...ok slight exaggeration on the last one but you get the point. They're angry. And I, naturally, am terrified.
So getting behind the wheel of a car with the intention of moving among these manic creatures made me very scared. My instructor was kind. He told me to go slowly and I did. He told me the proper way to get out of a parking spot and into the street. A man waiting to park behind me started screaming. Already. I hadn't even put the car in drive and already people were screaming at me. My legs were shaking, my eyes were wide. I felt like some bug-eyed animal left among a pit a predators. I prayed that I wouldn't die.
I didn't. Obviously. But I seriously considered that as a possibility.
What happened instead was a slow but not too bad experience where I slowly but surely turned, stopped, reversed and drove my car with the caution of an old lady, much to my instructor's pleasure.
He said I wasn't too bad. I thought he was just saying that to be nice but still, I couldn't help but feeling a little pride.
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