BEWARE: Asian Woman Driving!

It saddens me to say this but it's true. I've become one of my worst fears. A bad Asian woman driver.

As much as I have been trying to avoid it, I have recently gotten back behind the wheel of a car. It's almost impossible not to drive here in the suburbs. It's been a long time since I last drove and my first few excursions out on the road have been somewhat, ahem...adventurous.

Unfortunately, my driving has only reinforced the stereotype about Asian women being bad drivers.

First off, being in driver seat is just plain scary for me! I'm really not used to it anymore and I can't say that I'm fully comfortable in that seat. I'm constantly fidgeting around and I get tense when the car's in motion, which makes me even more uncomfortable.

Another thing, the car seems to be going much faster than it really is. On my first day on the highway, I was aghast at all the cars speeding past me. I was shocked at how cavalier people were with the high speeds they were driving. I mean, I was driving a speedy - wait! I'm driving 40-45 mph on the highway! No wonder people were passing me up! I tried to drive at the speed limit but it was really scary and seemed too fast for me.

Driving at night and/or in the rain is a complete nightmare and I've been trying to avoid that as much as possible. It's really much to dangerous for me and for everyone else on the road.

Bottom line? I really don't belong behind the wheel of a car. Though it really has nothing to do with me being an Asian woman. I'm just a bad driver now.

© Connie Hum 2009