Very busy day, including a trip to the DMV to have my picture taken for my license renewal. I’ve got a post in mind about the reluctance of young people today to rush to get their licenses, which is a striking change from the experience of my generation. It will have to wait.
In the meantime, I realize that I am wearing the same shirt I had on the last time I had my license photo taken. I may like me my fashions, but I do get a heck of a lot of wear out of the clothes I buy.
I’ve got a post in mind about the reluctance of young people today to rush to get their licenses, which is a striking change from the experience of my generation. It will have to wait.
No rush, obviously, but I do hope you don’t forget about it, and do eventually get to it; I, for one, am interested…
When I turned 16 a dozen years ago, I was in no hurry, mostly because the ongoing drama from my parents’ divorce a few years before meant we didn’t have the money to get a car. When I got my uncle’s beat-up pickup truck six months later, I finally decided the convenience was worth the DMV hassle.
My brother and step-sister — four and seven years younger, respectively — couldn’t wait to start driving. If I remember right, they had hand-me-down cars already waiting for them when they turned 16, and were much more socially active than I was in high school.
My younger step-sister will be 16 in September. I don’t think she’s even started driving lessons, and is surprisingly content to get around her sprawling suburb by bike. She’s also a bit more introverted than her older sister. And, with a grand total of five older siblings and step-siblings, I’m not sure that she’ll have a car any time soon.
I got my license the day I turned 16. First year I drove a death trap land yacht from my grandfather whose breaks let out on me three times, but I was damn glad to have it. I have to get my license renewed this summer and the picture on it is still the one from when I was 16.
Where I lived was extremely out of the way and an hour from any sort of public transportation system. Most people’s parents worked all the time so you had to get a car to either earn any money or get out of the house. I started the ritual of driving an hour every weekend just to get to a book store or a theater. I’ve had cousins not want to get their licenses, but those are also the ones who refuse to work and dropped out of high school. Getting your license means you have to grow up. Doesn’t stop them from driving illegally, though…
I feel like such white trash. The reasons for my folks not wanting to start driving/getting their licenses are probably different than with your kids.
I got my license at 16 - I was enthusiastic about it, but not completely gung-ho about automotive culture in general. It’s nice to have a set of skills (like driving), along with legal certification, at the ready.
However, I am currently a non-driver in Bali. Almost everyone who drives uses a motorbike, and I haven’t learned how to ride one yet. I’m quite afraid to, since I don’t mix really well with motorized machines, especially upon operating them for the first time. In other words, I’d most likely seriously injure myself and not find the experience worth it at all. Another deterrent is that foreigners who drive and get into an accident there are automatically “at fault”, no matter who was technically at fault. Not the most conducive combination of factors for motoring neophytes there. Funny enough, even though I’ve been teased a bit for my reluctance for learning to ride a motorbike in Bali, I’ve been perplexed by people’s sudden reactions when they see me grating vegetables on their homemade kitchen graters. They consider THAT endeavor dangerous for the inexperienced. I, on the other hand, have been grating various foods for as long as I could remember.
I got my license about a week after I turned sixteen and was so excited. I couldn’t go because I had practice after school every day, but I got out early one day so I could go. My mom took me and a friend of mine, I got my license, and then drove us all home — running a stop sign (not one at an important/busy intersection, but still) on the way. Guess I was just too excited.
Now I don’t drive, and while I miss the road trips, commuting is just hell. At least for me. I would get so angry that it’d take me hours to calm down afterwards. I’m glad I moved to where that is no longer necessary. Now it’s just me and my own two feet.
i just got my new license picture taken, too. the pic was 13 years old (16 then 29). let’s just say that i’ve been having some carding and identification problems.