Memory Lane

I just returned from a trip down memory lane. 

I revisited Whidbey Island where I lived briefly in 1968. I was pleased to see that most of the changes were for the better. 


 The waterfront town of Langley is lively and lovely. We enjoyed a rooftop lunch and did a little shopping. 


























The old wooden-floor grocery has been remodeled, upscaled, and expanded. 







While walking around town I remembered the milestone that took place there. Twice, not just once, I flunked the road portion of my test for a driver's license.

as it looks today

While parallel parking in front of the Star Store, I miraculously managed to get into a space. But when I needed to leave the spot I bumped the car behind me: immediate end of test, and no license. 













The second time, I was driving my dad's old green Chevy truck with the transmission on the steering column.  Going up this hill in second instead of first gear I stalled. Stopping dead in (potential) traffic forced the examiner to frown, fret, and flunk me. 





Oh well, there wasn't anywhere on Whidbey I wanted to go back then anyway. And I wouldn't need (and couldn't have) a car when I went to college that fall.



In the intervening forty-six years I eventually earned a driver's license, and Langley transformed itself into a charming village.  Some things improve with time!