The OTHER Right...

[BrenDAnn]

I got a nice shiny 2007 Impala today! Yay me! Leaving the parking lot on the test drive, though, I had an embarrassing brain burp. The car salesman told me "let's turn right out of the drive" so I said "okay"....and proceeded to turn left! Boy did I feel foolish! I swear I know left from right! I'm right handed! I KNOW which direction right is! I just got nervous! Gah! I always have a knack for doing stupid things like that too!

[georgie]

lol

my mum does that sometimes. my reply is always "no, your other right"

[RecoveringKinkoid]

Welcome to my world.

[aurelemsrealm]

I don't know if this will help, but here's how I learned to keep left and right straight....

I'm right-handed. You said you were also right-handed, correct?

I have a small calloused bump on my right middle finger. This callous developed from the way I hold pens and pencils when I write. As a child, I learned to differentiate left from right by feeling for that callous with my thumb. So, when I was still learning left and right, I would use the thumb of each hand to feel along the middle finger of each hand.

Even though I no longer have to do that to know left from right, I still do it as a force of habit. Whenever I have to do tasks which require me to switch back and forth very quickly, you'll often see me holding my thumb against that callous just to keep the reference in mind.

[Frantic Freddie]

My wife's a southpaw & she'll sometimes say "Turn right" while pointing left.

[Darkforge]

best way when driving is to have your hands at ten and two, then extend your thumbs towards each other and your first fingers up so that they make "L" shapes.

your right hand will make a backwards L, while your left hand will make an L which is the right way round, L for left, easy to do and very easy while doing a driving test when your hands should be at ten and two anyway

[shadowpanda]

My fella is right handed, but frequently gets confused when trying to give me directions. He'll point left and say right. I follow the finger rather than the words. I've never had a problem with my left/right but my right handed sister always gets confused (like when setting the dinner table with knives and forks) so I don't know how she compensated when doing her diving lessons.
Some people only wear rings/watches on their non dominant hands and use that as reference points, similar to what aurelemsrealm does

[Treasure]

When driving, i know where i want to go.... i will occasionally end up in the wrong lane, either because of other drivers, or a brain burp - (go down street X to intersection Y, turn left for destination A, turn right for destination B and actually be headed to A, but autopilot for B - circle the block!) But if I am in the car, not driving, and giving directions, I will say "turn right" and point left, 90% of the time, i mean, turn left.... so now when the bf and i go out, and he drives, i point, the directions we need to go, instead of telling him... my best friend noted this the other night and thought i had "trained" the bf to non-verbals, LOL no

[Teskeria]

my Big Sister (big sister org) taught me left from right by having me visualize the alphabet in front of me (the way they put it or kindergarten walls). L is always to the left of R, and your left hand is always to the left of your right if held directly in front of you

[FenigDurak]

I have a small calloused bump on my right middle finger. This callous developed from the way I hold pens and pencils when I write.

I was skimming and processed this word as "pen is" minus the space and felt really bad for you until I reread it.

[Dasota]

When I was little, I had a wart in the middle of the pad of my middle finger on my right hand. It's since been removed, but I will always rub my thumb over that spot when I need a moment to remember which is my right and which is my left.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

I know I read from left to right. And "Left - Right" is easy to remember, so I mentally think "Left" "Right" and imagine a book layout. (I don't have trouble reading, so as far as how to scan letters go, I'm fine). I have a point of reference if I imagine the edge of a book.

It's faster than "You WRITE with your right". I have to think about that too much.

[BrenDAnn]

Thanks for the replies! I should clarify, I DO know left from right. It was just new car making me nervous. One of those things where the brain just kinda...shut off. I'm sure you all understand!

[shadowpanda]

I know I've been there

Hope you've settled in with your new car

[BrenDAnn]

Thanks, shadowpanda. Yes, I love my car!