Driver’s Ed

Sadie Dingfelder and I took to the roads again yesterday, this time with news reporter Ruth Samuelson as our fearless leader. Braving the wilds of Bethesda was challenging. We had to slalom between giant piles of leaves and brake for a soccer ball at one point.

We’re making progress, though, and Ruth had some important pearls of wisdom to impart. For example, it’s ok inch slowly past a stop sign so you can see oncoming traffic. And the first person to arrive at a four-way stop has the right of way.

Driving continues to be an uphill journey for us, the biddies of the Beltway, the distressed damsels of driver’s ed. Sadie’s found she’s the Republican of the roads, always edging a little too far to the right. And I’m still sneaking up to the speed limit too slowly. But we’re getting there.

In fact, I think it’s time for our first real road trip. We need a destination. It should be an hour or so away without hitting the highway. Suggestions?

Driving Lesson 5
Destination: Bethesda
Lessons Learned: Stop means go slowly until you can see
Weather Conditions: Overcast
Sadie: B
Jessica: B

Instructors Comments: “Jessica is anxious about leaving the empty neighborhood roads--with their soft buffers of leaf piles--but she's ready for bigger streets, and next time, she should go for it. Sadie earns extra points for boldness. But, she needs to become more of a road centrist, and stop favoring the right side so much.” – Ruth Samuelson