[code"> [/code"> Courtenay Brown: Is it me?

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Is it me?

Today when I was riding my bike home from BART, in the middle of the afternoon, a car pulled up next to me. Actually it was a truck, with a borderline sketchy dude in it. The truck was teal, which is itself a warning sign of borderline-ness. I mean seriously, teal?! Anyway said dude starts talking...

Lascivious Sketchy Dude in Teal Truck: How YOU doin'?

Me (pulling ipod from ear, I should not have been listening since I didn't have on a helmet, bad girl...): Oh sorry to block your way, I'll get out of the road.

LSDITT: No girl, I'm tryin' to TALK to you.

Me (slowing my pedalstroke, which does no good since he correspondingly lets off the gas): Oh.

LSDITT: You goin' for a ride this morning?

Ue: Um it's 2:30 in the afternoon?

LSDITT: Whatever. Morning, afternoon, same thing.

Me (yeah this conversation is going on WAY too long, in a direction that is WAY too wrong): Um there is a car behind us so I should get out of the middle of the road?

LSDITT: Can I call you sometime? You're niiice lookin'.

Me: Um I don't think my, um, boyfriend would like that?

At this point LSDITT drives off. Thank god. And I hide behind a car for a minute or two, to make sure he is long gone before going to my apartment building that's in an OK neighborhood but it's still the type of area where I am like "Whoa, there's a normal-looking couple walking down the street! And they don't even have a pit bull with them for protection!"

...How is it that I can simultaneously feel like such a bitchy white prudish chick jumping to conclusions about someone, and such a completely vulnerable and far too polite, even naive, girl?

Is there a line between protecting oneself and being rude?

Is that a question I should even be asking?

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3 Comments:

Blogger Unknown said...

dude, you should never feel bad about protecting yourself!

p.s. are you sure the picture in your previous post is your sister?? it looks exactly like YOU.

9:05 AM  
Blogger EB said...

Rude is secondary to safe. I had similar thoughts this morning as I hollered at a dog on a leash who wanted to eat me...did I upset his owner? Then I realized that it was probably just good to get the owner's attention so he would make sure to control the pooch.

5:30 PM  
Blogger norcalcyclingnews.com said...

yikes.

well, it doesn't sound like you were all that rude. i was rude to a guy yesterday over his driving and my riding. both of us were being stupid and i just wasn't in my happy place and went off on him.

bad boy.


... hey, wait ~ you're a bad girl for not wearing your helmet! be rude all you want as long as you were the skidlid, yo.

well, i recommend them anyway ... but it's a personal choice. but one thing i always think about is the 7 or 8 year old kid who sees the fancy bike rider whiz past, all decked out in superduper clothes on the shiny boss bike ... without a helmet.

then the kid thinks it's cool to not where a helmet. and that kid falls a hell of a lot more than i do. so, i'd prefer it if the kid thought it was cool to wear one. might save the noggin for a few more years ... at least until they start smoking the marijuana in high school.


mmm...

8:43 AM  

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