Today, I take my driving test.
Normally, this wouldn't be worth daylogging, were it not for the fact that a) I am 18 and b) this is my THIRD try at the coveted license. Getting a license in Utah is supposed to be easy; our governor even expanded driver license registration to include illegal aliens. Unfortunately, due to a combination of a strict teacher and indifferent parents, I still drive with a practicing license.
I had passed the written test just fine. It was the driving part which I failed - twice. The teacher had a strict judging criteria, and if you did the following things, you flunked:
- Turning too wide
- Turning too narrow
- Failing to check your blind spot on a lane change OR failing to check your blind spot on a lane merge
- Hitting something or someone
- If the teacher hits his brake, you fail.
First Try
|_____________|
_______|_____________|________
| | (red turn | |
| | arrow) | |
| | | |
| | | |
--------._____________.---------
|_____________|
| | ||me| |
| || |
| | || | |
| \\ |
| | \\ | |
|
|
mfk (thinking): Hmmm, I'm a bit too far from the white line here.
Better inch up juuuust a tad--
Instructor (slamming on his brake): WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? IT'S A RED TURN
ARROW! YOU FAIL IT!
Second Try
| || \ road merging into one lane
| || \
| || | |
| || |
| || | |
| || ^ | |
| ||me | |
mfk(thinking): Boy, sure glad I didn't do anything stupid so far. Smooth sailing
so far. I hope he doesn't ask me to parallel pa-
Instructor (scribbling on pad): Wow, I'm amazed you didn't even notice that you
failed.
mfk: Er, what?
Instructor: Didn't check your blind spot. Sorry. Thanks for playing.
So, after not driving to high school at all during my junior and senior year, and with college coming up, my parents agreed to help out with driving practice.
Wish me luck.