Parallel Parking

"I can't do this with you in the car" 18-year-old Tina nearly screamed at her father after about an hour of frustration. Teaching teenagers how to parallel park can be very trying, both for the teen, and for the parent. Learning new skills can be a real challenge, and often times what may seem like a simple task can erupt into a migraine headache and immense family upheaval.

Ezra Brickman decided to take the bull by the horns (figuratively speaking). After rubbing his temples trying to stave off the on-coming headache, he decided to let technology do what he obviously couldn't do. He set up an XCam2 wireless camera on a tripod behind their car so it would show what happened as his daughter Tina backed up. Then he put the receiving unit with the battery pack inside the car, and attached a little TV set to the dashboard using a DC converter that plugged into the cigarette lighter. Then he left his daughter with this phrase, "I'm leaving you on your own. The XCam2 will show you what happens when you turn the steering wheel and move the car. You'll figure the rest out from there."

With that, Ezra left his daughter to teach herself how to parallel park. And sure enough, a half hour later Tina came bounding into the kitchen and gave her father a big kiss. "Thanks dad!" was all she said, but to Ezra those words spoke volumes. "X10 can be a far more patient teacher than any human could be" Ezra said with a grin. "All it takes is a little imagination, and you'd be surprised at what you can do."

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