My first solo drive

Today marked my first solo drive in USA. After getting my Flexcar membership, I had tried to come up with a valid destination to drive to.

Vladimir, who was coming back from his honeymoon in Hawaii, decided to give me a call in the morning, checking whether I could pick him up from the airport. I had jokingly told him that I could pick them up last week.

I was mentally unprepared for this drive as I thought he would called me yesterday to arrange but he did not. I had imagined myself practising more before hitting the highway. Negative thoughts swept through my mind as I performed my experiment. However, I told myself not to let fear prevent me from taking action. Instead, I should channel it towards making me more alert and reactive.

I told him that I had to check online to see if there was a car available at that slot. Among four cars, all but one were reserved. I reserved the last from 2pm to 4.30pm. I got into the car at the appointed time by tapping on the card reader on the front screen. There, I proceeded to retrieve the key. Getting the hybrid sedan to start took me some time as I had to browse through the car manual.

After getting the engine to start, I took a longer route to get used to the car. I avoided the highway first since I was not confident. Traffic was smooth and I could find my way onto 295 South leading towards Baltimore-Washington International Airport. Driving on the highway was not as bad as I thought.

Thinking that they would need time to get their luggage, I decided to find the garage and meet them at the arrival hall. I followed the signs leading to the garage but missed a turn and ended up at the cargo complex.

Just as I was retracing my route, I got a call from Vladimir that they were done. I told them to wait for me at the arrival hall.

After they had got in the car, we headed back towards Baltimore. Vladimir who was trying to help by giving me instructions got me nervous instead. I told him to "back off" and that I was the one who had the steering wheel. The idiom "too many cooks spoil the broth" also applies here.

Along the way, there were courteous drivers who let me overtake them and idiot drivers which nearly caused accidents! This marks the beginning of building my confidence on the road and the responsibility to drive safely!