Women behind the wheel...

Every time I park, they are there again. The familiar little army of men who always know better. I often make the joke myself when another little army of men is ready to direct me into a parking space. I think a thousand things. For example: I also park sometimes when you are not there. For about 25 years. Or: I do have my driver's license in principle. For about 25 years. Or: just look at my car. It doesn't date back to prehistoric times, so you could reasonably assume that my Renault is equipped with a camera system, a warning beep, and with a bit of luck, it is equipped with Easy Park Assist and I hardly have to do anything myself at all. But if they feel really good about shouting: ‘Another meter’ and ‘Turn, turn, turn!’, then I let them have that. That's just how I am.

Women and cars. I have two types of girlfriends; the urban gazelles who never had to drive but were driven (sigh) and the go-getters who drive better than the men I know. Friend H. drove every day from Arnhem to Hilversum at twenty and could reverse just as well as drive forward. Friend A. drives so smoothly and effortlessly (and okay, she knows how to find the gas pedal) that people often think a man is getting out until they see her graceful appearance. Anyway, type two is the entrepreneurial cool girl. The independent woman who does not want to be dependent on anyone or anything and chooses her own destination.

Two weeks ago, I interviewed Lieke van Lexmond and we talked about cars. She started on a dead-end path by a lake near Vianen where no one else came. In the Renault of her father, she could go forward and backward. In his 1. She did that until she was eighteen and quickly got her driver's license license.

What When it comes to driving behavior, we don't differ much from men, I think. Although we do dare to ask for directions, we might be a bit messier (although we do separate waste, apples and banana peels in the back and empty Fisherman’s Friend bags and used smoothie cups in the front), we turn the music down as soon as we start to reverse (why do we do this?) and okay okay, we do tend to postpone refueling a bit until the last moment. But other than that? Other than that, we are at least as good as the men. But if they are happy to correct us a bit left and right... Oh well, we let them have their delusion. That's just how we are.

Every time I park, they are there again. The familiar little army of men who always know better. I often make the joke myself...