Mhhhm…
What have I learned from my siblings?
When I was young, we had manual vehicles. My dad’s truck was 5 on the tree, mom’s station wagon had a shifter on the column too. A couple of my brothers had street motorcycles and of course they both had a clutch you worked with your heal. There were dirt bikes and 3 wheelers at my aunt and uncle’s property that you had to manual shift as well.
Turns out I never got to drive the 3 wheelers or dirt bikes as a kid because, well, I was a girl and only the boys got to drive ’em. And, I was always ‘too young’. Looking back, that might have just been momma’s excuse to keep her only daughter off the bikes. Anyway, by the time I was driving, mom’s car was what we lovingly called the SS Burgess, a huge 4 door automatic Chevy Impala and dad’s ‘truck’ car was an auto shifting El Camino.
When I took possession of my first car I couldn’t actually drive it because I had not yet learned to drive a car with a clutch. My brother Keith helped my buy my beloved blue Mustang and he drove it home from Renton Ford with me riding shot gun. For the record, being 17 and leaving my car sit in the driveway was torture. Thanks brother Tim for teaching me how to actually drive the car I had sitting in front of our house.
It was Honey who taught me how to drive a motorcycle. With him on the back, we rode around his couple acre pasture. When it looked like we were going to end up in the irrigation ditch (imagine a 3 feet deep water canal running along the property line) Honey started yelling “TURN!” over the noise of the engine. It still makes me laugh to think about him jumping off the back as we beelined for the crop water.
Jeff’s motorcycle sitting along side the canal
Actually, I did not learn to drive a motorcycle: one and done. Though I did not end up in the ditch, Honey was done with the lessons.
Oh, I also learned to light matches but that’s a story for another day.
Great story Jo! Cheers to life lessons.
My first car out of college that I purchased with my own “hard earned money” was a Chevy Chevette. I called it my Vette 😂 and it had a clutch. Like you, my dad took me to Burien to a used car lot and worked the deal for me. He, then drove me home because I didn’t know how to drive a clutch either. He taught me going up and down our LONG driveway. I drove that car until someone rear ended me and totaled my car, then purchased my first NEW car, a Toyota Corolla — another clutch! I got pretty good navigating the Seattle hills because my job was downtown. Thanks for reminding me about this fun memory.
I remember that long driveway. I never drove down it and my mom always wanted to drop me off at the end so she did not have to back out. i have many good memories heading to your house.
’40 Chevy coupe. Never lost a street race with it and my brother’s classic ’49 Merc coupe–both sticks. My daily driver today is a stick–’72 MG Midget purchased in 1972. It still looks and runs great, thanks to one of your old high school neighbors (Joe Stone).
A couple of times I got to move your red MG from the teacher parking lot to the tennis courts. It was such an honor to be trusted with those keys. I’m sure you knew I could handle the job, yet that gesture of trust built confidence that stays with me today.