And speaking of eagles, the 1970's driver's ed labs at Eisenhower High, home of the Eagles, were high tech and extremely advanced, so much so that we were written up for having the most user-friendly and technically advanced teaching stations in the southern California driver's ed world. It was a proud moment when I slid my size 5 jeans onto the seat behind the wheel of that simulator. I can still remember the thrill, and fear, as I placed my hands at 2 and 10, sat up straight and waited for the lights to flash green. NASCAR had nothing on me.
Of course, speed wasn't an issue since we were in a stationary simulated driving environment, but I still felt the wind in my long wavy auburn locks....oh wait, this isn't a dating site. Let me get back to the issue at hand. Soaring with eagles, wasn't it? Anyway...
Defensive driving was stressed in every clip of the semester-long video taped course, and restated in person by the driver's ed instructor on a daily basis for those 4+ months of intense days in THE SIMULATOR. (think the Governator's voice).
But with all of the technology, repetition, simulated driving situations and even on-the-road, behind-the-wheel driving, no one every mentioned offensive driving - the most widely used driving technique in the DC area.
So here I am, the product of a recognized-for-innovative-excellence driver's education program, but clearly missing the learned skills of offensive driving. Thankfully, when driving the streets of DC, instincts prevail and the desire to live overcomes any learned skills or formerly held belief that courtesy is paramount on the highways. An almost zealous need for speed takes over as focus is narrowed and determination kicks in.
My independent nature has kept me behind the wheel of a car since the day I arrived, in spite of the very efficient (and easy) Metro system that gets you wherever you want to go for just pennies. However, over the past few weeks, my will-to-live has run rough-shod over my independence. And thank heavens for that. There have been too many close calls with taxi cabs, pedestrians, bicyclists, parking meters, one-way streets (yes, I've turned into one so far) and congested traffic in general.
Oh, don't get me wrong, I may have turned into a one-way street going the wrong way, but I have also mastered the technique of cutting in front of cars, easing my way into a lane that is crammed bumper-to-bumper with commuters, pretending to not care that the speed of traffic is an average of 5 MPH, built up muscle to carry pounds of quarters at all times for the parking meters, and mastered successfully parallel parking in a space even my first bike wouldn't fit in. I can do all of this, it's just whether or not I want to. Turkey, or eagle, that is the question. Join the turkeys or soar with the eagles.
The ability to drive on the offense, while remaining acutely aware of other drivers and being defensive, is a quickly learned skill and I believe I've mastered it, which means I am still alive, still driving, but much more inclined to return to the simulator-like safety of the Metro than stay on the crazed-driver infested roads of DC and NoVa.
So, the Metro will see a bit more of me, even if my hair won't be blowing casually in the wind (except as the train approaches). But on those occasions when I do choose to drive, I will think of THE SIMULATOR fondly and sing our Alma Mater with a new found pride, because even if I am stuck on the ground with turkey's, in my mind I will always be an Eisenhower Eagle in size 5 jeans.
And that's that. Survival of the fittest. Avoid turkeys.
Be strong, be bold, be offensive. Be an Eagle!
And...I'LL BE BACK. (think the Governator's voice).
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