Walking and cycling has become significantly harder over the past few months. To stay mobile I decided that buying a scooter is the way to go. Even so, I\u2019m still hesitant. It\u2019s a big step to make. I told my young son I\u2019m considering buying a scooter. He thinks it\u2019s awesome. When I told him it has three wheels and not two he lost a bit of that enthusiasm, but he\u2019s still on board. After a few test drives I\u2019ve finally decided which one to get. It\u2019s got a top speed of 15 km\/h and has great suspension.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been in my front yard since Wednesday. After three days of getting used to the thing, me and my husband decided to take the scooter for a spin on Saturday. We decided to go to the shopping centre. It\u2019s late, so if we take a big detour the chances of running into anyone we know is very slim. Through the front yard. Looking left and right, making sure the coast is clear, and off I go. Scooters have some amazing acceleration capabilities. Its top speed proved to be a bit of a letdown on the tarmac, but other than that things are just fine. At the shopping centre my husband wanted to have a go on the scooter. While he\u2019s grazing the pavement, my neighbour suddenly approached us. Busted. On neutral ground, being seen in a more compromised state somehow feels less impactful, especially when he told me that his son was deeply impressed by the speed at which I drove off earlier. That comforted me.<\/p>\n
My next big test: going into town. I went to the cinema with a friend. We were both a little nervous. Crossing a bicycle path proved to be the most hazardous obstacle. A cyclist was coming right for us, so I instinctively pulled the lever that would be a brake on a bicycle. I forgot that pulling the lever on a scooter makes it go forward, while letting it go makes the scooter stop. So, of course, I ran right into him. He picked himself up, swearing. I mumbled something about the scooter being new and that my reflexes hadn\u2019t adapted to it yet. My friend gave him my address in case I did lasting damage to him or his bicycle, and we were on our way again. It doesn\u2019t really matter whether I liked the film we saw or not. The important thing is that we went.<\/p>\n
Lastly, we went grocery shopping with the whole family. It was already dark, but still. My daughter wanted to sit at the front, but only if she could steer the scooter. I let her, despite the fact that the accident with the cyclist had made me a bit anxious. I quickly got over it. Not much can go wrong when you don\u2019t go too fast. It all went off without a hitch. Unashamedly, I parked the scooter in my garden.<\/p>\n
I think the scooter and I are going to be just fine. <\/p>\n
September 1998
\nJeanet van der Vlist, Leiden<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Walking and cycling has become significantly harder over the past few months. To stay mobile I decided that buying a scooter is the way to go. Even so, I\u2019m still hesitant. It\u2019s a big step to make. I told my young son I\u2019m considering buying a scooter. He thinks it\u2019s awesome. When I told him … <\/p>\n