6 Year Driving Anniversary

I'm one of those weird people that remember particular dates. Because of this, I loved History in Year 11 and 12 and found it easy. What's so special about the 6th February, you ask? Well, six years ago, on the 6th February 2001, I got my driver's license. Yep, I've been on the road for six years.

It may not seem like a big deal to most people but in Albany it is. When I was in Year 12, it didn't matter how well you were doing academically - what mattered was whether you got your license and, more importantly, whether you got your manual license on the first go. I could have got my license when I turned 17 in May 2000 but I was way too busy with Year 12.

After the dreaded exams were over, I took a gazillion driving lessons because (a) I was crap and nervous and (b) my parents refused to take me for lessons because they thought we'd just end up fighting - and we did the one time Dad did take me. I was driving on the track around one of the local footy ovals, doing 30km/hr and thinking I was hooning ;)

My driving instructor was great. He always brought peppermints to eat during the lessons and was so patient with me. I remember stalling on York St (Albany's main street) and the guy I liked at the time happened to be watching. I was mortified, hopped out of the car and insisted I get into the passenger seat.

In January 2001, I went for my manual license for the first time but the licensing dude was scary!! He was huge and barely fitted in the car (a Hyundai Excel) and he looked like a cross between Kim Beazley and John Howard (the actor on All Saints, not the Prime Minister). I was so nervous I ended up going through a stop sign on my own street! That was an automatic fail.

Two weeks later I was back and failed again, mainly for being too cautious. Peter (my driving instructor) told me later the licensing dude shouldn't have failed me. I was too upset and I didn't want to go back for a third attempt. I decided I would settle for an automatic license which I knew I could get easily. Peter talked me into going for the test one more time.

It was on the 6th February 2001 that I finally got my license. I made very few errors and there was one funny incident during my test when I had to reverse up a very steep driveway. The licensing dude had noticed a group of gangster-looking people making their way towards us and was evidently nervous. I was too focused on the driveway to notice but he said to me 'Let's go somewhere else. I don't like the look of those people.' So he ended up picking another driveway on another street which was so easy. When we got back to the licensing centre and he told me I passed, it was the best feeling I had ever felt in my life to date. I had finally did it! Unfortunately, I got my license the day after the new rule was brought in which made P platers have their P plates for two years instead of one. My friend Josh thought that was hilarious as he'd gotten his the day before.

A week later I moved to Perth but it wasn't until October 2002 that I could afford to buy my own car. My first car was an Albany beast - a white 1995 Daewoo 1.5 called Bertie. People sure avoided me on the freeways for a while - a P plater from the country! Bertie eventually failed me. Everything that could go wrong with him did so on the 21st April 2005 ,when I'd started working where I am now, I bought another car; a silver 2004 Hyundai Accent whom I called Roberta (naming cars must be a chick thing!). Roberta was a former hire car so she was only eight months old. It was nice as a single female to not have to worry that my car was going to break down all the time.

I was soon to learn that God gives and takes away. On 21st October 2005, exactly six months after I got Roberta, my friend Kate and I were involved in a car accident. It wasn't my fault as some idiot went through a red light and smashed into us then drove off. The car hit just inches behind the driver's seat so I was fortunate to not be seriously injured. I was left with whiplash and shock and Kate wasn't hurt. Roberta wasn't so lucky and when I saw the extent of the damage, I decided I never wanted her back again as she'd just never be the same. But off she went to the smash repairs and I went without a car for a while. We didn't get the whole number plate of the other car so the other driver was never caught. I had to pay $650 in excess which was cut back a bit because some very generous Christian friends helped me out. I was so blessed to have friends like them. I started driving again as soon as got Roberta back but it really took me a long time to get over the accident and I lost a lot of trust in other drivers to do the right thing.

So that's it. 6 years of driving adventures. I have very strong views on things like speeding and drink driving which have been even more strong since the accident and I'll discuss these in later posts. I'm always try to remember to pray for a safe journey when I drive and I'm praying for many more safe driving trips.