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Oh Bugger.
19 years ago
General
Today was... very... very long... I am soooo tired ;_;
I awoke sick. Aching, sweating, shivering, my throat parched and my nose oozing. I could swear I have a fever... i don't know what i'm going to do tomorrow when i'm expected to work...
But today was big for a different reason, and I can't say I really regret it, as the end seems to have justified the means even if it may have made me sicker. you see... we bought a car. We have come into the ownership of a 1975 volkswagen SuperBeetle; all new leather interior, dashboard, stereo system, a high-performance Porsche engine modified for racing... the body is solid STEEL, bumper to bumper--yes, even the bumpers are steel. It's a TOUGH little car.
But aside from kudos and huzzahs for the purchase of this splended vehicle...
Today was the day I learned to drive stick -_- IN THE SPACE OF ABOUT AN HOUR, I had to learn how to not drop the transmission on the road. I'm STILL shaking x.x I must've performed 70 laps in that tiny parking lot, just struggling to not let the car bunnyhop itself into a STALL. The problem for me wasn't remembering to use the clutch. on the contrary, I think I OVERUSE the clutch. it's sort of my panic pedal. The issue for me is giving it enough gas to keep it from HALTING mid-stroke.
I learned a fuckload of things ._. You can't idle bugs. You can't let them just ease forward like an automatic; you're either GOING, or you're NOT. if you try to communicate in any finer shades of the language, you are VERY DISTINCTLY and SORELY not going anywhere. I learned that you do not apply gas in response to letting up the clutch; you let up the clutch as a response to having the engine supplied with enough gas. I also learned, at least, that Volkswagen Beetles are very forgiving beasts, and infinitely patient if you know how to treat them. Don't be afraid. Don't treat it like it's some kind of cheap, fragile toy; a car like this deserves respect and trust. TRUST it with your gas pedal, or it will stall on you, in effect saying "If you can't trust me to accelerate, I can't trust you to drive me."
Nonetheless, however, I remain extremely shaken and tired. Driving stick is fucking INTENSE >_>;; I was NOT ready for this, but by the end of the night, it was up to ONE thing: I want to go home, and we aren't getting home unless I get us there; the busses weren't running anymore for the night and that V-Dub was our only hope. I learned to trust it because I -had- to, and that kind of trust is always draining x.x
I'm sure I'll learn to love its quirks. These cars have personality; you have to communicate. you have to LISTEN. it doesn't HAVE an RPM gauge--you have to HEAR it tell you "I'm topped out, you better shift up!" with its whined plateau. An automatic transmission, it's almost completely one-sided... you press the go pedal and GO you shall. Er, gently. Don't push it or it'll BREAK! --but not a Manual, oh no. You say "GO" and it says "HAH. Right. Is that all you've got!" *shivers* i'm a little scared of it, but I get the feeling the car was getting patient with me, even a little sympathetic. I took the jerks and jumps like reassuring pats on the back "You'll get it... keep trying. Don't worry. Relax."
So, whereas an automatic vehicle is like a slave, a manual is like a partner. at least so far it is. Right now though, it's hard for me to concentrate on ANYTHING while I'm driving... I can hardly keep my mind in one piece!! I find myself FREAKING OUT At the lights i'm coming up to even if they're GREEN. I find myself gripping the wheel white-knuckled with one hand, the STICK white-knuckled in the OTHER, afraid to abandon them--and my left foot poised tense over the clutch. If I wasn't FORGETTING to breathe, I was hyperventilating!
But y'know... A manual... if you're in the right mindset, it's reassuring. It is ... almost liberating, because you DO somewhat feel like you really ARE taking the road into your own hands. I am sure it'll be an unparalleled thrill once I get used to it, IF I DO... But for now, the best I can hope to do is SURVIVE.
With all the practice I did tonight, I feel distinctly as though I'd spent it Experience Grinding, as if I were a measily level-10 trying to master a level-60 EPIC MOUNT.
... I'm still debating as to whether or not I should go Manual when I get my -personal- vehicle.
I awoke sick. Aching, sweating, shivering, my throat parched and my nose oozing. I could swear I have a fever... i don't know what i'm going to do tomorrow when i'm expected to work...
But today was big for a different reason, and I can't say I really regret it, as the end seems to have justified the means even if it may have made me sicker. you see... we bought a car. We have come into the ownership of a 1975 volkswagen SuperBeetle; all new leather interior, dashboard, stereo system, a high-performance Porsche engine modified for racing... the body is solid STEEL, bumper to bumper--yes, even the bumpers are steel. It's a TOUGH little car.
But aside from kudos and huzzahs for the purchase of this splended vehicle...
Today was the day I learned to drive stick -_- IN THE SPACE OF ABOUT AN HOUR, I had to learn how to not drop the transmission on the road. I'm STILL shaking x.x I must've performed 70 laps in that tiny parking lot, just struggling to not let the car bunnyhop itself into a STALL. The problem for me wasn't remembering to use the clutch. on the contrary, I think I OVERUSE the clutch. it's sort of my panic pedal. The issue for me is giving it enough gas to keep it from HALTING mid-stroke.
I learned a fuckload of things ._. You can't idle bugs. You can't let them just ease forward like an automatic; you're either GOING, or you're NOT. if you try to communicate in any finer shades of the language, you are VERY DISTINCTLY and SORELY not going anywhere. I learned that you do not apply gas in response to letting up the clutch; you let up the clutch as a response to having the engine supplied with enough gas. I also learned, at least, that Volkswagen Beetles are very forgiving beasts, and infinitely patient if you know how to treat them. Don't be afraid. Don't treat it like it's some kind of cheap, fragile toy; a car like this deserves respect and trust. TRUST it with your gas pedal, or it will stall on you, in effect saying "If you can't trust me to accelerate, I can't trust you to drive me."
Nonetheless, however, I remain extremely shaken and tired. Driving stick is fucking INTENSE >_>;; I was NOT ready for this, but by the end of the night, it was up to ONE thing: I want to go home, and we aren't getting home unless I get us there; the busses weren't running anymore for the night and that V-Dub was our only hope. I learned to trust it because I -had- to, and that kind of trust is always draining x.x
I'm sure I'll learn to love its quirks. These cars have personality; you have to communicate. you have to LISTEN. it doesn't HAVE an RPM gauge--you have to HEAR it tell you "I'm topped out, you better shift up!" with its whined plateau. An automatic transmission, it's almost completely one-sided... you press the go pedal and GO you shall. Er, gently. Don't push it or it'll BREAK! --but not a Manual, oh no. You say "GO" and it says "HAH. Right. Is that all you've got!" *shivers* i'm a little scared of it, but I get the feeling the car was getting patient with me, even a little sympathetic. I took the jerks and jumps like reassuring pats on the back "You'll get it... keep trying. Don't worry. Relax."
So, whereas an automatic vehicle is like a slave, a manual is like a partner. at least so far it is. Right now though, it's hard for me to concentrate on ANYTHING while I'm driving... I can hardly keep my mind in one piece!! I find myself FREAKING OUT At the lights i'm coming up to even if they're GREEN. I find myself gripping the wheel white-knuckled with one hand, the STICK white-knuckled in the OTHER, afraid to abandon them--and my left foot poised tense over the clutch. If I wasn't FORGETTING to breathe, I was hyperventilating!
But y'know... A manual... if you're in the right mindset, it's reassuring. It is ... almost liberating, because you DO somewhat feel like you really ARE taking the road into your own hands. I am sure it'll be an unparalleled thrill once I get used to it, IF I DO... But for now, the best I can hope to do is SURVIVE.
With all the practice I did tonight, I feel distinctly as though I'd spent it Experience Grinding, as if I were a measily level-10 trying to master a level-60 EPIC MOUNT.
... I'm still debating as to whether or not I should go Manual when I get my -personal- vehicle.
