low_delta: (car)
low_delta ([personal profile] low_delta) wrote2006-11-06 10:02 pm
Entry tags:

old habits

About twelve to fourteen years ago, I drove a forklift. It was a sit-down type. It's controls were: gas pedal, brake pedal, steering wheel, two levers for the forks, and a lever on the steering column for forward and reverse. I'd be crusing around pretty good, gas/brake, forward/reverse, pick up a palette, spin around drop it, pick up another, stack it, drive into a trailer. Always in a hurry.

After work, I'd back my car out of my parking spot, put the car in "D", step on the gas, and find myself still moving backwards. It took me a few days to realize that I wasn't putting it in drive, but flipping the lever on the steering column, like on the forklift, expecting to change direction, when I'd really only flipped the turn signal on.

Sometimes, I did this out on the street, too. I'd pull up to a stop sign and flip the lever. I'd take off through the intersection wondering why my turn signal was on, when I was going straight. The strange thing was, I usually only did this at one particular intersection. Even stranger, I still do this there sometimes. I did it last week. I'm wondering how I got into this habit. I didn't drive through that intersection much until after the forklift job ended. And when I did it last week, I was going east through that intersection, and I don't recall doing that before. It's always when I'm going west.

What a strange thing.

[identity profile] specificocean.livejournal.com 2006-11-07 04:07 am (UTC)(link)
My car has a manual transmission. If I drive a car w/an automatic, I'll sometimes stomp on the LH side of the brake pedal to push in the 'clutch'...*lol*...

[identity profile] low-delta.livejournal.com 2006-11-07 04:20 am (UTC)(link)
Oof!

[identity profile] roadskoller.livejournal.com 2006-11-07 12:28 pm (UTC)(link)
That's weird about that particular intersection, but Stan takes turns really wide in the car and will wait for a break in traffic big enough to get a truck started.
I've also seen him grabbing air while he looks for the stick shift that isn't there.

[identity profile] specificocean.livejournal.com 2006-11-07 01:28 pm (UTC)(link)
I don't do that very often, fortunately....*lol*...

[identity profile] low-delta.livejournal.com 2006-11-07 02:48 pm (UTC)(link)
I very often reach for the shift lever on the steering column in Cyn's car, even though it's on the floor. But her last car had it on the column, so that's not too surprising. And the two cars were very similar - unlike yours and a semi.

[identity profile] vocalista001.livejournal.com 2006-11-07 03:30 pm (UTC)(link)
Funny how ingrained habits can be. It is really weird that that particular intersection brings the behavior out. hmmm.