Not really about gardening at all ...
I’m away from home this week and I’m really missing my garden :-(((((
Before I left early on Saturday morning, I gave hubby a tour of everything that needed watering in the house, greenhouses and garden and I KNOW he will do his very best to make sure everything is OK while I’m away. But there’s still that niggling little doubt at the back of my mind ….
Not that I’m at a loss for things to do. I’ve brought my laptop and Mum-in-Law’s wireless internet connection is enabling me to connect to the internet so I can keep up with MyFolia and other favourite sites. I also have a big project in hand – a Complete Redesign of our gallery website which will, hopefully, go live early in the New Year, ahead of hubby’s prestigious solo Exhibition at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens next April.
I was in two minds whether to post the REAL reason for my trip because there is a fair amount of stress and apprehension involved already. I’m not sure if posting it will increase the tension and expectation or if it will bring encouragement from my friends here on MyFolia and boost my confidence. In short, at the tender age of 50, I will be taking my driving test for the first time at the end of the week. I successfully passed the Theory test in April with 50/50 on the multiple choice questions and 59/75 for the hazard perception clips. So I am half way there!
The weather has been alarmingly changeable ever since I arrived with torrential downpours every day, interspersed with brilliant sunshine. Today it has hardly stopped raining since before breakfast and it’s just getting heavier and heavier as I type this. I’m going to make VERY sure that I know where the lights, windscreen wipers and demisters are located in my instructor’s car because the forecast is no better for the end of the week.
I have lessons every day this week and my poor knees, unused to so much clutch control and braking, have really been feeling the pressure over the last 24 hours. But I have resolved to meet this challenge to the very best of my ability and (fingers crossed!) I’ll soon be surrendering my thirty year old provisional paper driving licence.
To give myself a boost, yesterday I spent an obscene amount of money having my hair washed, cut, coloured a nice dark blonde to hide the encroaching grey, deep conditioned and blow dried. Hubby is going to have a dreadful shock when he sees the cheque stub!
Today I managed all the manoeuvres perfectly – reverse round a corner, reverse parallel parking AND reversing into a parking bay. But then I frightened myself half to death negotiating a large and complicated roundabout with seven exits (well, two are approaching one way dual carriageways and it would be Very Bad News to try and turn off onto them …) and nearly moving out into the path of a Very Large 4X4 that shadowed me round the roundabout just on my right hand side then LOOMED in my wing mirror as he accelerated past me! So tomorrow my instructor is going to concentrate on dual carriageways, complicated roundabouts and the skills of scanning/planning/acting on what you see. Oh joy …..
So tomorrow I have my last full lesson in the morning and in the afternoon I’m going into the village to have a massage – hopefully that will get rid of the tension and knots that have invaded my shoulders, back and neck over the last week.
Wish me luck, folks, and a few positive vibes aimed in my direction on Friday would be very welcome :-)
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Armorel's gardening journal
This entry is about Armorel's adventures in gardening.
Isles of Scilly, United Kingdom
Next Posts
- A MOST unpleasant shock! (warning - not for the squeamish ...)
- Half way through clearing out the greenhouse
- ... emerges from my Ark ...
- Yes, I'm still here!
- Rose Hip Syrup
Buzz buzz buzz!
Listen in on the Grapevine
Linda Mae wrote:
Oh – good for you! Well done for getting as far as taking it. I never learned to drive, had some lessons at a couple of points in the dim and distant past but didn’t persevere and I so wish that I had.
Actually ‘scanning/planning/acting on what you see’ – I could do with those skills in all sorts of areas of my life!
Be confident – you’ll be one of the safest drivers out there you can be sure.
I’ll be at home on Friday, stripping wallpaper and sanding window frames in the back bedroom. I will be sending positive, calm thoughts your way.
Posted on 09 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Annet wrote:
We will certainly send you positive thoughts on Friday!! I hope it all goes smoothly!! I don’t have my license either. I did give it a couple of tries, but after having spent a fortune and failing my practical exam three times.. (sorry, shouldn’t be talking about this right now..) I felt very discouraged and gave up on it. So, I admire your courage and resolve. Go for it!! That massage is such a good idea, it shows you’re really taking good care of yourself. Good for you.
Posted on 10 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Silver Charming wrote:
Aww good luck Armorel xxxxxx I’ll be sending all the lucky vibes I can. Does anyone on myfolia actually drive? I was too scared even to ever have a lesson! Anyway good luck xxxxxxxx
Posted on 10 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Dee wrote:
You go girl…. Come Saturday you’ll be showing off your p plates :)
Posted on 10 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Armorel wrote:
Thanks all – those virtual hugs and good wishes really DO help :-)
Posted on 10 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Annet wrote:
That’s so funny. If we’re going to organize a Myfolia meeting/world tour, we’ll have to make sure it’s by public transport. Unless Armorel won’t mind driving us around.. :)
Posted on 10 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Armorel wrote:
Well, I just had a very mixed last full lesson – the first hour was smooth as silk and the last half hour was a Nightmare.
I encountered Idiot Woman who reversed smartly out of her drive opposite a junction just as I pulled out, White Van Bully who forced me to brake sharply when he commandeered my side of the road because there was a parked van on his side (even though I had right-of-way), and a host of careless pedestrians (including mothers pushing babies in prams/pushchairs) who launched themselves without even looking across a zebra crossing right in front of me as I exited a really busy roundabout with a 4X4 right on my rear bumper :-(
To say that my confidence has been dented is an understatement – I feel like it’s in pieces strewn all over the place. Never mind, I have that relaxing massage to look forward to in a little while and, in the meantime, I’m hitting the Rescue Remedy ‘big time’ …
I’m really going to need those good vibes tomorrow folks!!!
Posted on 10 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Linda Mae wrote:
Yes but look on the bright side – you didn’t hit any of them!
Posted on 10 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Armorel wrote:
ROFL @ Linda Mae
You’re right – I need to spend some time meditating on the bright side of it all :-)
Posted on 10 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Happibun wrote:
Linda Mae is absolutely right, superb stuff, you did not hit any of them, nor did you dent your car. You’re taking your test in one of the toughest places you can, and if you can negotiate those roads, you can drive anywhere.
I remember bricking myself before my test (long time ago, in Leicester), and feeling that I didn’t have a hope, I then passed it first go. Just be mindful of the rules, and drive like everyone else is an utter idiot, and you will be fine.
I’m sending the best vibes I can (even though they are slightly hung over), and will do so tomorrow too.
GOOD LUCK!
Posted on 10 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Gaidig wrote:
Wow, it looks like the test in Britain is much tougher than the test here in the US. Hazard perception clips sounds like such a good idea (if I’m interpreting the idea correctly). Backing around corners isn’t on our test, either. I wish we had more stringent driving tests and more public transportation to make not driving a more viable option. I grew up ina suburban area ten miles or more from the nearest bus line. I was by far the last person I knew to get a license because everyone else I knew jumped to get theirs at 16, while I waited until the “grand old age” of 23.
Also, I agree with Linda Mae and Happibun; there are a lot of crazy drivers and foolish pedestrians out there, and one of the things that the test is intended to measure is your ability to safely cope with these unexpected dangerous situations. It sounds like you did very well.
Good luck!
Posted on 10 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Iechris wrote:
Good luck with your test! I wouldn’t want to have to drive with those round-a-bouts. They are awful.
Posted on 11 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)
Silver Charming wrote:
Any news yet? Good luck, we’re thinking of you xx
Posted on 11 Jul 08 (about 5 months ago)