Offline Learning, Day Three - Car Ma

By Tatiana Guerreiro Ramos

My oldest, Luca, had never heretofore been interested in getting his driver’s license.

Boat license? Sure. He spent HOURS doing the online training he needed so he could drive a small motorboat around his grandmother’s summer cabin in Canada.

Driving a car in Berkeley? Not even a blip on his radar.

I had been begging him to do the online training so he could get his license and drive his little sister around. I should have known better than to use that as a carrot. I also should have known my hands-on kid needed to be, well, hands-on, in order to fully appreciate the thrill of driving.

So I decided the time is right for Luca to learn, with empty Bart station parking lots, and far fewer cars on the streets.

He got behind the wheel of our car, and I could see the light go on over Luca’s head. Within the first two minutes, he said, “Wow. This is fun. I don’t know why I didn’t do this before.”

So driving lessons have become the offline learning activity of choice for my 17-year-old and my younger son, who also really enjoys backseat driving when his brother is at the wheel. I told him to stay in his lane, pun intended, and that if he didn’t stop I would use him as an obstacle in the parking lot.

At the rate the shelter in place is going, Luca should be able to apply as a walk-on Formula One driver by May. The apple wouldn’t be landing far from the tree, since my driving could generously be described as Indy-ready. (Lisa won’t let me put a CM magnet on the side of my car because she’s afraid I’ll cut off or otherwise piss off a potential CM client. She’s not wrong.) Don’t judge - 20 years in New York City battling for space with taxis, and I’m also Brasilian, where driving laws are, umm, intermittent.

At least then Luca would be able to drive his siblings around. Even if he gets a speeding ticket while doing it.