Conversation with a teenage granddaughter

As I drove Maddie across town to her job, a car dealer on the main drag was having a big car show and traffic was backed up for miles and on side streets as people tried to get out of town.  We inched along and talked about this and that.  She's excited to be taking her drivers test tomorrow and will get her license on July 19th, the day after she turns 16.  Instead of being the encouraging grandma I should be, our conversation went like this:

Me:  Well, you know. You have to be ready to accept the fact you might flunk the driving part the first time.
Maddie:  What?  Why would I flunk? I'm appalled that you'd think I'd flunk!

Well, I flunked my driving the first time and so did some of my friends. You probably won't, though, as you have more confidence in yourself than I did at 16.  And I had to take my test with a car that had a clutch.  I stalled the car three times just trying to get out of the state patrol office. My dad was so embarrassed.

Why'd you have to use a car with a clutch?

That's all we had in our family at that time.

What?  You had to use your OWN car?

Well, of course. What other car would I use?

Didn't you get to use the teacher's car?

No. We took driver's ed for free for six months in high school but our everyday practice was with parents in our own vehicle.

Really? We have to pay $50 for driving and written tests and the class was $500.

Well, I lived in the old days, I guess. I don't remember what my license cost but it was under $10 I think and we didn't get our picture taken either. We just had a paper license.  And only a few kids had their own cars. It wasn't the norm like it is today.

Then a DJ on the radio started talking about Mick Jagger.  He said:  Ole Mick is gonna be 80 real soon and I guess he won't be singing Beast of Burden then -- cause he'll probably be one himself.

I laughed and then didn't laugh as I remembered that Ole Mick was born 2 months before me!  ha ha