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Do you like celery?Dec 25 '99 Write an essay on this topic.I don't particularly care for celery. I'm not one to spend hours lying on a beach. Country/western music makes me long for a good rap song. (I can't stand rap). But, I love driving a stick. Most of my friends think I'm out of my mind. Why would anyone enjoy driving a stick in New York City? I ask them if they like celery. As far as I'm concerned, it's a matter of personal preference. My knowledge of automobile engineering can just about fill the cap on a tire valve, so I won't attempt to extol the benefits of one type of transmission over the other. Why did I go manual in the first place? Honestly, it was cheaper. I was fairly destitute at the time and needed to buy a new car. A manual transmission saved me about a thousand dollars (which, at the time, was a good chunk of the total cost of a new car). I enlisted the aid of a very patient friend who taught me how to get the car rolling forward (I got the backward part down okay) and smiled graciously as I ground the gears of his old Subaru. He even maintained his poise as I undertook my first left turn. (You mean I have to turn the wheel, work the clutch and the gas pedal, find the right gear, hit the lever on the directional light and watch for oncoming traffic at the same time? Wait a minute, let me take the gum out of my mouth first.) I won't try to kid you. I was not a natural at this. And, I had serious doubts that I would ever catch on. But, after 2 weeks behind the wheel of my own car I wondered how I ever drove anything else. I enjoy the sense of control I have. I enjoy being involved in the driving experience. I do admit, I often question my sanity when I find myself rowing home along the Long Island Expressway. (That's about as pleasant an experience as root canal.) But, it does make my arrival home all that more special. Should you chose a manual transmission over an automatic? I don't know. Do you like celery? Before you let anyone try to convince you that one is better than the other, think about what the driving experience means to you. Is shifting a delight or a bother? Is the drive the end or the means? Can you spell Fahrvergnugen? (Doesn't matter. I don't know if I can either.) Can you learn how to drive a stick? Yeah, if I can, you can. Do you want to drive one? Only you can answer that. I've often eaten celery to avoid offending my host or hostess. I still didn't like it much.  |
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