Shifting Times

I had a number of things to follow up on today. One of my friends helped me hook up with an agency who sends people out, on call, to drive new cars around at the Port of Tacoma. I filled out more paperwork and took tests today, offered a specimen for drug testing, and had an interview filling me in. Kerri, the interviewer, was rather stern about making sure I was confident driving a 5-speed stick shift. It has been several years. I switched to automatics when I got tired of slipping the clutch so often in stop and go traffic, and I never looked back. So I figured the sense memory is still there, but I wasn't feeling that confident. "If they see you hesitate, they'll send you right back!"

I went to the Honda dealer, where I have bought two cars and feel confident, thinking to just do a test drive as a way to practice before I'm on call on Tuesday. A salesman was hanging around the main door as I sidled past, thinking to snoop around the used cars.

Charles H.: Hi, can I help you?
Me: Yes, well, I wanted to see if I could still drive a 5-speed transmission.
Charles: Okay, are you thinking of more of a two-door, or a four-door?
Me: Probably a four-door.
Charles: So, why do you want to go back to a stick shift?
Me: Well, to be brutally honest, I got a job at the Port of Tacoma driving cars, and although I drove stick shifts a lot in the past, I want to feel more confident when I show up. Since I don't have a lot of friends lined up that I know drive manual transmissions, that I can borrow their car for a drive, I thought I'd see if I could go on a test drive here. I've bought two cars here in the past, and I'm very happy with them . . .

So I did, I drove around a newer Honda Civic for about twenty minutes, and had more of a challenge making sure the windows stayed free of fog, than working the clutch. I'd forgotten how much work a standard transmission is, but the sense memory is still there. It only died once. So that was good.

Then I came back to the US HealthWorks and received paperwork proving that I'm still immunized from Hepatitis B, and had my PPD read, came home and phoned the "Weird Home Health Agency" to see if I was still welcome at their orientation Monday. They tried to recruit me for a night shift tonight--nothing doing.

Off to see my daughter and boyfriend and his lovely family.