Story last updated at 6:56 a.m. Tuesday, September 30, 2003

A beginner gets behind the wheel
BY PAUL BOWERS

Just holding the card in my hand, I feel adrenaline rush through me. It's my ticket to freedom, to happiness and to adulthood. After waiting 15 years and five days, I finally earned my beginner's permit. I can drive.

That's right. I turned 15 this month. I'm one of the oldest high school freshmen I know, so I'm one of the first kids on the block to start driving.

I guess you could call this a turning point in my life. Driving is a milestone in gaining my precious independence, so of course I've been looking forward to this a while. Naturally, my parents were kind of nervous about me being on the road. (You would be, too, if you'd seen me screeching around the go-kart track at Frankie's.) But they were cool about it and let me take the test.

All my older friends had told me the test was really easy, but I skimmed through the South Carolina Driver's Manual anyway. It contained such mind-numbing nuggets of wisdom as "a longer distance is needed for stopping on a wet or slippery pavement" and "You must yield to pedestrians who have properly entered the intersection." I was just planning on using pedestrians as speed bumps. Glad they warned me on that one.

I would have gotten my permit sooner, but my birthday was on a Saturday, and it was one of the two weekends the Department of Motor Vehicles wasn't open. That's not bad luck. That's dumb luck.

So I went Monday afternoon to the Ladson DMV office eager as a kid at Toys 'R Us. But when I got to the front of the line, the receptionist informed me that I had to be there before 4 p.m. to take the test. It was about 4:10.

I hurried back to the DMV after school Wednesday.

The lines really weren't as long as they look on TV, and soon I was face to face with an oh-so-cheery employee. I proudly told her I was 15 years old and was there to get my permit. I handed her my paperwork and stepped into a glass room where I found Computer No. 2. Two other guys were in there taking tests, one looking pretty tense, the other looking like he'd taken it a couple of times before.

The test popped up on the screen, one question at a time, and I answered by tapping the answer with my finger.

I thought this was really cool, but it also took just about an eternity to load each question.

Most of the questions were no-brainers, like my friends had told me, but they threw a couple of trick questions in there just for fun, including one that wasn't even a complete sentence.

I only missed four out of 30 questions. I walked back out to the reception area with the uncomfortable seats and lousy paintings on the walls. My mom looked at me expectantly, hoping she wouldn't have to come back here anytime soon. I nodded and gave her a thumbs-up.

They took my picture, I signed my name, and there it was, my very own permit. My mom didn't let me drive back home, but I've gotten plenty of practice since then.

I didn't smile when they took my permit picture. The way I figure it, if a cop pulls me over, I probably won't be grinning like a moron, so I want my picture to match my face. I know the responsibility that comes with being behind the wheel, and I'll admit, it's scary sometimes that I'm out there driving, but I'll be OK.

All my friends at school were stunned when they saw my permit. Some have decided to take the bus everywhere from now on. They'll all be turning 15 and getting their permits soon, but until then, I plan to gloat nonstop.

Of course, I don't have my own car yet. My parents say I have to buy it myself, so I'm starting to save. I'm looking for something cheap but dependable. By that, I mean a rusty old junker from someone's front yard with weeds growing out of the hood.

So maybe one day you'll see me cruisin' the strip with the top down (because it doesn't have a top anymore) with one hand on the wheel and the music cranked up. If you do, be sure to give me a honk. Then get off the road.

Ink contributor Paul Bowers, 15, is a freshman at Summerville High School. Contact him at soccerdewd88@sc.rr.com.