Not what I thought this post was going to be about

I'm still amazed at how much I like driving. Eight hours to visit a friend is
a) a good chance to listen to country radio
b) time to hear debates on talk radio
c) opportunity to rediscover old favorite cds
d) the perfect excuse to make a playlist of music to decide whether I like it or not
e) best spent with the windows rolled down
f) excellent alone time
g) a reason to call people in my phone's contact list who I haven't talked to in far to long
h) short enough to justify a long weekend trip
i) especially if I tell myself I can sleep in on Monday morning, since I end up not leaving until after an early dinner...

~~~

I failed the driving test 3 times. The first time I'd practiced the route with my instructor in the hour before I took the test. They changed it. Had a whole new procedure. Still not sure I'll ever pull my car off the road and then back up into my lane.

Second time it was parallel parking (there were potholes in the spot) that I thought I'd never really need to use, because I wasn't going to live in the city.

Mmmm... yeah...about that.

~~~

My first long solo car trip I stopped ever couple of hours at the beginning and every hour by the end.

Now I can start for 4 hours. Then I'm hungry.

Current favorite chains to eat at when I'm driving (and can't find a cute local spot from the interstate signs):
a) Culvers
b) Chic-fil-a
c) Olive Garden

The flowchart from last year, apparently doesn't jive with me.

~~~

My first driving experience post-getting my permit was on a stick. It was terrifying. Stalled out everywhere.

Eventually I figured it out though. It was that or only drive the minivan to school.

And now it's not fun to drive anything else.

Not sure what this means in a market where they're disappearing. Hybrid and manual don't go together as efficiently.

But that's okay. My car's only tipping 60 thou. Hope we have many more miles ahead of us.