So this story begins almost 5 years ago. It is the story of my driving. When I learned to drive I was taught on an automatic. I believe simply because there weren't any manual vehicles at my disposal. That and I had no urge to learn how to drive a manual. Well about 5 years ago it was decided by everyone that I should learn how to drive a manual transmission. I decided to hey let's give this a try. I believe part of the reasoning for learning was that my friend Tanya either learning to or teaching someone to drive stick. I figured if my ditzy friend Tonya can master the manual transmission. I should be able to do this.
I went to visit my friend N. up at UW-Stevens Point for the weekend. N had a stick shift. She said to me "Jessica, I can teach you how to drive a stick no problem." So she takes me to a back road in Point and lets me "drive" her car. We jerk our way through Point and she says to take her back to the dorms. So I do having to cross a pretty busy road in the mean time and having to stop and start several times. I surprisingly enough was able to get her car back to the school in one piece.
I was also told to try to learn on my step-dad's old one ton truck that you didn't even have to use the clutch any more. Josh told me that he had never seen a vehicle bounce so much in his life. Do I boycotted learning to drive a manual transmission.
Then Josh bought his Frod Probe GT. That was a NICE car as far as cars go. I decided that hey maybe I should try my hand at this again. It has been a couple years let's give it a try. So Josh took me out to the old K mart parking lot and had me drive try to drive his car. I remember rounding the building a few times. I couldn't really call it driving because I would start out jerking the car or stalling it. Then by a miracle of God I would get the car to start smoothly. I could get maybe into 3rd gear before having to slow down to turn the corner to head around the building again. Somehow I made it into the new K mart parking lot and drove around for a little bit and was convinced I was ready to head out onto the road to drive home. Well actually if I remember correctly we were driving to Hardee's. So I coast through the stop sign and pull out onto 151. Luckily the stop light was green and I didn't have to stop. I remember speeding up to 55 and having Josh scream at me "Shift Dammit you are going to blow my car up!!!!" We got to the stoplight were I had to turn. No traffic again!! I am so lucky!!! I then have to turn left into the Hardee's parking lot and what happened. Bam! a whole long line of traffic shows up and I can no longer coast into Hardee's parking lot. I tried and tried and tried and I couldn't make the car move. I tried to make it go and it wouldn't. I couldn't get the car to move for the life of me. Finally in jerky motion I got the car to cross the centerline and into the parking lot. By this time I was in tears!! Not just tears all out sobbing. I stopped halfway to the drive thru and made Josh take over. I vowed that I would NEVER learn it was just too hard and that I wasn't going to be able to master this EVER!
Well, then Josh bought his Scion. He absolutely had to have a manual. Don't ask me why, he is weird like that. So again I was faced with a dilemma. Should I or shouldn't I try. I didn't want to end up in tears again, so for the past 3 months I have avoided it like the plague. Finally last Sunday (11/28), I said to Josh "Why don't we go and try to teach me to drive stick again?" He agreed and we went to the school. He parked in a parking stall and said here you go. I got and and bam on the first try started going. Stopped and tried again and got it on the first try again. So I continued to drive around Spring Green. I drove home got the dog and drove to my parent's house. In all this time only killing it once. I was pretty proud of myself. I have Mastered the driving of the manual transmission. I am not an expert yet but I will get there some day. I am just happy that I don't get picked on by my family anymore. Woo HOO!!!!
I am the stick master!!!~~
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