road envy

I am finally learning to drive. Mrs. K took me out for a mini-lesson the other day, and I got to drive back from the courts after Bobby and I played tennis. It's quite thrilling, being behind the wheel for the first time and experiencing the power of a well-tuned machine and four wheels designed to take you wherever you want to go. I bet most of my friends of driving age in the U.S. will read this and think I'm silly--but think back to the very first time you turned on the engine. The first time you gripped the wheel, lifted your foot off the brake, the car slid into motion, you sped up a hill or down a road, or even parked in a space correctly. Didn't it make you feel powerful? I often felt that way when I rode my bike out in the road in Tokyo, getting to places in half the time it would take a car by weaving in and out of traffic and taking back roads. I never felt envious of people who could drive. But now, having done it for a total of about 30 minutes, I feel a small coil of jealousy growing inside me as I watch the other cars while sitting passively in the passenger seat. And all I can think is: Damn it, I want to drive.