Road Rage!
Gak! I almost got beat up today! Maybe not beat up, but I definitely got road raged!
Okay, so I was trying to get off at the 12th Ave exit from 405 (which is also the exit for 26 West) and I needed to get into the right-hand lane. I put on my blinker and tried to move right. This robin's egg blue SUV was behind me, in the lane I wanted to be in. Then he sped up and was next to me. I thought, Hey Buddy, if you wanna switch lanes and merge left, I'm cool with that, but I need to be in your lane. So I sped up to get in front of him. Well, my blinker was on the whole time, so I figured my intentions were clear.
I didn't know what traffic looked like behind him, but that's not the point. The point was I needed to make my exit, and he I guess didn't want to share the road. So finally I went for it and sped up and pulled in front of him. Which then required me to hit the brakes because I would have hit the trailer of the truck in front of me. This, of course, really pissed him off.
He starts giving me the finger (actually double finger). So I double finger him right back. Well, awkwardly enough, the light at the first intersection after the exit is red. He barrels up behind me, and I can see him making the "What? You wanna go!?" shoulder-shrug. I make a "What the fuck?!" shoulder shrug, and the next thing I know, he's putting his SUV in PARK, AND HE'S GETTING OUT OF THE CAR.
The MOTHER FUCKER is GETTING OUT OF HIS CAR to FIGHT WITH ME, A 5'4" 23-YEAR-OLD GIRL!
I figure this guy is psycho enough that he might actually hit me (like with his fist), and that this merits a little law-breaking. So I step on the gas and blast through the red light. He JUMPS back in his car and high-tails it after me. Well, I live on 12th Ave., and I'm sure as hell not going to give him any indication of that, so I try to make the next available right to get away from him. Unfortunately, I hit another red, and there were cars coming that were preventing me from turning right to make my escape. Next thing I know, he's on my ass again, making threatening gestures. As soon as I can, I turn right and start weaving through cars, trying to lose him.
Well, as committed as he was to kicking my ass at that first light, I guess he gave up and decided wherever he was going was more important than teaching me a lesson about NOT CUTTING HIM OFF.
Okay, so I could have tried to get into the lane behind him, but the fact of the matter was I had already slowed from my highway speed to merge right for the exit. I wasn't going to drop down from 50 to 30 MPH just because this man couldn't allow me to merge. He did NOT have the right of way because it is ILLEGAL to pass on the right. Was there any real point in speeding up when I had my blinker on indicating my intention to be in his lane from before he was technically even on the freeway (it's kind of a complicated stretch of roadway, but my blinker was on long before he ever touched 405)? The only point I can think of was to show me how much control he has over the road, or to demonstrate what an asshole he is.
I mean, SHARE THE ROAD, YOU MOTHER FUCKER!
Having worked with victims of domestic violence, I have no doubt that this man has abusive tendencies. Why would anyone go to such lengths to intimidate another person? Are you fucking crazy? What if I had gotten out of my car at that light? He would have called me all sorts of names, I bet you a dollar. Why? Because He has the right to not be cut off, I guess. My only point would have been, Sir, I know you're upset right now, But I needed to exit because this is my neighborhood and your driving was preventing me from doing that safely. What was he going to do when he got out of the car? What if he had tried to hit me? Scary!
I just don't believe in getting that worked up over a stranger. There are more important things in this world that beating someone to an exit or getting pissed off when you get cut off. Here's the bitch of it: he wouldn't have been "cut off" if he had just allowed me to get into that lane. If he had just stepped off the gas and fallen back the tiniest bit, there wouldn't have been any issue. But he had to be a Big Man and teach me that He Doesn't Allow Anyone to Get In Front of Him.
If I were a fighter, maybe I would have gotten out of the car. Maybe I would have confronted him. But I am not a fighter. And I prefer my face not spit on or broken or whatever he was going to do to it. And I don't deserve to be intimidated BY ANYONE. I treat others fairly, and I deserve to be treated with respect. I don't deserve to be scared into submission. He can go fuck himself for all I care. I hope karma, or the police, bites his ass.
Okay, so I was trying to get off at the 12th Ave exit from 405 (which is also the exit for 26 West) and I needed to get into the right-hand lane. I put on my blinker and tried to move right. This robin's egg blue SUV was behind me, in the lane I wanted to be in. Then he sped up and was next to me. I thought, Hey Buddy, if you wanna switch lanes and merge left, I'm cool with that, but I need to be in your lane. So I sped up to get in front of him. Well, my blinker was on the whole time, so I figured my intentions were clear.
I didn't know what traffic looked like behind him, but that's not the point. The point was I needed to make my exit, and he I guess didn't want to share the road. So finally I went for it and sped up and pulled in front of him. Which then required me to hit the brakes because I would have hit the trailer of the truck in front of me. This, of course, really pissed him off.
He starts giving me the finger (actually double finger). So I double finger him right back. Well, awkwardly enough, the light at the first intersection after the exit is red. He barrels up behind me, and I can see him making the "What? You wanna go!?" shoulder-shrug. I make a "What the fuck?!" shoulder shrug, and the next thing I know, he's putting his SUV in PARK, AND HE'S GETTING OUT OF THE CAR.
The MOTHER FUCKER is GETTING OUT OF HIS CAR to FIGHT WITH ME, A 5'4" 23-YEAR-OLD GIRL!
I figure this guy is psycho enough that he might actually hit me (like with his fist), and that this merits a little law-breaking. So I step on the gas and blast through the red light. He JUMPS back in his car and high-tails it after me. Well, I live on 12th Ave., and I'm sure as hell not going to give him any indication of that, so I try to make the next available right to get away from him. Unfortunately, I hit another red, and there were cars coming that were preventing me from turning right to make my escape. Next thing I know, he's on my ass again, making threatening gestures. As soon as I can, I turn right and start weaving through cars, trying to lose him.
Well, as committed as he was to kicking my ass at that first light, I guess he gave up and decided wherever he was going was more important than teaching me a lesson about NOT CUTTING HIM OFF.
Okay, so I could have tried to get into the lane behind him, but the fact of the matter was I had already slowed from my highway speed to merge right for the exit. I wasn't going to drop down from 50 to 30 MPH just because this man couldn't allow me to merge. He did NOT have the right of way because it is ILLEGAL to pass on the right. Was there any real point in speeding up when I had my blinker on indicating my intention to be in his lane from before he was technically even on the freeway (it's kind of a complicated stretch of roadway, but my blinker was on long before he ever touched 405)? The only point I can think of was to show me how much control he has over the road, or to demonstrate what an asshole he is.
I mean, SHARE THE ROAD, YOU MOTHER FUCKER!
Having worked with victims of domestic violence, I have no doubt that this man has abusive tendencies. Why would anyone go to such lengths to intimidate another person? Are you fucking crazy? What if I had gotten out of my car at that light? He would have called me all sorts of names, I bet you a dollar. Why? Because He has the right to not be cut off, I guess. My only point would have been, Sir, I know you're upset right now, But I needed to exit because this is my neighborhood and your driving was preventing me from doing that safely. What was he going to do when he got out of the car? What if he had tried to hit me? Scary!
I just don't believe in getting that worked up over a stranger. There are more important things in this world that beating someone to an exit or getting pissed off when you get cut off. Here's the bitch of it: he wouldn't have been "cut off" if he had just allowed me to get into that lane. If he had just stepped off the gas and fallen back the tiniest bit, there wouldn't have been any issue. But he had to be a Big Man and teach me that He Doesn't Allow Anyone to Get In Front of Him.
If I were a fighter, maybe I would have gotten out of the car. Maybe I would have confronted him. But I am not a fighter. And I prefer my face not spit on or broken or whatever he was going to do to it. And I don't deserve to be intimidated BY ANYONE. I treat others fairly, and I deserve to be treated with respect. I don't deserve to be scared into submission. He can go fuck himself for all I care. I hope karma, or the police, bites his ass.