Remember way, way back when I had talked about how cool it would be to be able to take the Internet with me anywhere I went and wouldn’t have to depend on sitting at my computer at home? And then, obviously smart phones and WiFi became a normal everyday thing.
Yeah, so… maybe if I put it out there, the universe will respond again. I know they are already working on this but I want it to happen in my lifetime. And not in like 40 years, when I’m too old to actually make use of it. Like, soon.
I want self-driving cars.
Whenever “old” movies were set in the “future”, they always had flying cars. I never liked that idea. It seems way too dangerous. People can barely drive on a flat surface. If you add in having to track what’s going on above and below you as well as in front and behind… No thanks.
I can think of a few movies that had self-driving cars – Total Recall, Minority Report… maybe The Fifth Element? – but I think these were all also flying. I don’t want that.
I had to look up if there were even any self-driving cars in movies that DON’T fly. Something like what I actually want. I came across this list and this list, both of which I take objection to since many of theirs are self-aware autonomous beings in car shapes. Like, why didn’t they just include Lightning McQueen, in that case? LOL. But the inclusion of I, Robot is interesting. I only saw that once, yeeeeeears ago, and don’t remember that scene at all. Maybe it’s time for a rewatch. And I’ve never even seen Timecop, although it’s on my list.
(It’s been awhile… I had to check. Total Recall had self-driving taxis (Johnny Cab, FTW!) but it looks like only the cabs were auto-piloted.)
More recently, because self-driving cars are on the verge of being a thing, more examples can be seen in TV and movies. We just finished watching the first season of Upload, which has a self-driving car as a critical element in the plot. It’s the closest version I’ve seen to what I want. Minus the crash, obviously.
Really, what I’m looking forward to is to not be dependant on someone else to get me where I want to go. If I want to go visit a friend, I can just hop in my car, and sit back while it gets me there. I don’t have to schedule a time when Hubby can take me. I don’t have to feel guilty about getting a friend to come pick me up. I don’t have to pay a fortune for a taxi or the hassle of slow-moving, uncomfortable public transit. If I wanted to go on a road trip alone, I could. I can just go where I want on a whim. You know, like people who actually drive their own cars do now.
For many years, “learn to drive” was on my New Years Resolutions list. It was always something I meant to do that I just hadn’t gotten around to yet. After awhile, I gave up on the idea because I was just THAT lazy and it was too expensive. But now? Honestly, I know I don’t have the coordination and concentration to be able to operate a motor vehicle safely. With the executive dysfunction issues I have, I’m aware of my limitations when it comes to things like that. I’ve had so many people tell me things like, “It’s never too late” and that it’s not that hard. I just smile and say nope. I know what I’m capable of and I’m okay with not killing myself to do something that I find way more difficult than most other people do. Maybe if I put in a supreme amount of effort, I could be a mediocre driver someday, but the amount of stress and uncertainty I would have to endure to do so, with the reality that it IS actually more expensive than what we can afford, it isn’t worth it.
I will never learn to drive.
That’s okay.
They are working on self-driving cars now and *fingers crossed* that may become a viable reality within my useable lifetime.
If not, give me an AI butler that can drive me places.
blah blah blah 
Glad someone wrote about self-driving cars in this fun, peppy post. It works for lazy bum like me, postponing learning to drive for a decade and this year was gifted a handbook which I hardly touch. Bring it on.
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