Permit to be a Personal Assistant!

After Friday's mix-up with the proper forms of ID need for the learner's permit test and Monday's most depressing snowstorm, I took Nathan to get his permit yesterday!

Nathan is usually the most relaxed guy on the planet.
Anyway, when I picked him up at school, he was going a mile a minute.
"Do you have my birth certificate?"
"Are we going to Lowell or Leominster?"
"I wish I brought the study guide."
I said, "Nathan, are you nervous?"
He said, "Just a little."
I said, "I've never even seen you this nervous before a test! Just relax. You're a smart guy, it's all common sense, and you'll do fine."
He then gave me the "You SO don't know what you're talking about" look.
Note to self: Practice giving off wise old woman vibes before the Driver's License test!

On the way to the registry, he double checked the application, which I had filled out for him.
He said, "Organ donor? Jeez. Don't I get to make that choice?"
I said, "Well, Nathan, I just figured that you're into recycling, and that organ donation is just like recycling. You're a Vermonter; thus, that makes you earthy crunchy by design, so just go with it!"
He then quickly said "Oh, look, I can get my motorcycle license next year!" and smiled at me.
(His Dad has always loved motorcycles and owns a Ducati.)
Anyway, I think that remark was definitely payback for me for automatically volunteering him for organ donation!
And, I have to admit it; this motorcycle riding stuff is one of my parental hypocrisy things.
I'd love to be on the back of a motorcycle every now and then, BUT I want my son nowhere near one!
Funny how that works, huh?
Motorcycles are okay for me, BUT NOT FOR MY CHILD!
I SO know I read that somewhere in the Parent Handbook that came with Nathan.

Anyway, when we finally arrived at the registry, we checked in, got our number (C325), and took a seat.
Nathan's leg went up and down, up and down, and I finally had to say, "Nathan, stop. Relax. Don't fret. If you don't pass it this time, we'll come back next week."
He said, "But, Mom, it's $30 to take the test! That's a lot of money. That's a........X-box game! My friend, Sam, failed THREE times!"
He paused and then said, "Though, he's not the smartest guy."
I said, "Look, $30 is not a huge amount. And, it's okay if you don't pass the first time."
It was really nice to know that in this day and age that Nathan thought $30 was a huge amount of money, err, well, an X-box game.

I then pulled out my little notebook that I always carry with me in which I jot down story ideas and the like.
He said, "Mom, what are you writing?"
I said, "Just some things about this trip.'
He kept trying to pull the notebook away from me, and then I said, "Look, I've got a blog!"
He said, "A blog, God, what has my Mother come to? You're gonna be playing video games next!"
LOL!
I don't think so, but Nathan's learner's permit test had "blog" written all over it.

He then said out of the blue, "Mom, you know if I get my C-class license, I can drive a tank."
I said, "I didn't know that. Well, given that you're going to be driving your Dad's Suburban**, you just might want to check that out!"
**Tangent: I feel for both Connor and Nathan.
At 16, they both were telling me how much they love the nine-year-old Toyota Rav with 147,432 miles on it.
Don't most 16-year-olds dream about Corvettes, Porches, and Mini-Coopers?
K, the mini-Cooper just may be a Nathan-only thingy. :-)
Although, I don't blame them for loving the Rav, because Connor's got to learn how to navigate a big Honda Pilot, and Nathan's got to tackle "Big Red" (the Suburban).

The Registry PA system continued to announce numbers, Nathan still intently listened to each one, sighed when he realized it wasn't C325, and continued to pump his leg, up and down, up and down.
As we were sitting there, I pulled out my license, because I thought it was about to expire soon.
It was a fab photo, and I was thinking, "Oh, how long 'til I have to get a new photo which won't be HALF as good as this one?"
I said to Nathan, "Gosh, I got this in 2002, and it expires on my birthday this year. So, it was good for six years. I think they just changed the law on that. Hmmmm."
--PA System---
"C325"
Nathan and I were both deep in thought.
He was worrying that he'd fail his test, and I was worrying that when I had to have my license photo retaken in May that I would end up with a Lindsey Lohan mug shot instead of a Gisele Bundchen headshot.

The woman sitting next to Nathan, also with a driver's permit boy in tow, said, "That's you!"
Nathan and I scurried over to Booth 3.
Paula entered information in her computer, checked Nathan's form, took his picture, and then asked him to glance into the eye test machine and name letters, colors, and spot where a little dot was on a picnic table.
After doing so, she told Nathan to go to the permit test room and upon finishing (getting 18 out of 25 correct), he could see anyone at the desk to get his permit.
And, off he went...I sat there on the bench...I could see him at the computer...making his choices...all the while I had my fingers crossed and was doing that Mom chant..."Please let him pass...please let him pass!"
Twenty-five minutes later, he emerged from the permit room.
I gave him the "So, did you pass?" look.
And he then gave me the thumbs up.
Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooo-hooooooooooooooooo!

As it turns out, he got 19 out of 25 questions correct.
He said, "Mom, that's pretty good considering I didn't really study that hard."
Yeah, that's so NOT what a parent wants to hear!
On the walk back to the car, he said, "And, Mom, I got one right because of you."
As it turns out, one of his questions was how long a license was good for.
Since I had said earlier that my license was only good for six years and I thought that they had since changed that law, it was very easy for him to choose "Five years" for that answer.
He said, "So, thanks for that Mom!"

After leaving, he immediately called his Dad to tell him that he had passed.
He then said eagerly, "Mom, can I drive home once we're off the highway?"
Once we were off the highway, I forgot to pull over.
I think because I was saying to myself over and over in my head, "OMG, my son can drive now. OMG, I'm old! OMG!!!!!!!"
I was pulled out of my little trance state when I heard Nathan chanting over and over, "Drive, drive, drive!"
I pulled into a parking lot, and he took the wheel.
Funny, but I was just a bit misty eyed then.
To me, it was just unfathomable how this guy, who was just holding his teddy bear yesterday, was now holding the keys to a 7K machine that could kill someone!

As we pulled out onto the main road, Nathan ask about the speed limit, and I told him it was 35 m.p.h.
He was doing about 25 m.p.h, and I said, "Nathan, you might want to pick it up a bit, so no one thinks you're an old lady."
He said, "Nah, I'm not an old lady, but I've got one in the car!"
Ah, it doesn't get any better than that...being heckled by your chauffer!

We drove back to fetch Connor, and then Nathan drove himself back to his Dad's, and then Connor drove me home.
Considering they both haven't been out on the road too much, they're both doing really well.
I haven't dug my fingers into the dashboard..................yet.
Nathan still does the whiplash stop and has a distinct fondness for driving to the far right; thus, I was up close and personal with a lot of snow banks yesterday; and, Connor loses focus sometimes, like when he was driving home and said, "Oh, that's Kevin Wickshaw", turned to look at Kevin, and then veered off into the oncoming lane of traffic!
Anyway, they'll do fine, I'm sure. We haven't lost one yet at "Jean's School of Driving and Music Appreciation".
Well, I might lose them somewhat the day we start blasting Abba songs in the car!

So, in my "Life is Like a MasterCard commercial" vein of thought...

Learner's Permit Fee: $30
Time to Take Learner's Permit Test: 25 minutes
Passing Learner's Permit Test the First Time: Priceless!