Being asked for for a ride by a stanger

[s]

My parents and husband are the types of people who give rides to people who seem like they need it. I'm usually a very suspicious person, but I recall once I was at a store that was closing for the day, and a little old lady realized the last bus had already left. I'm acquainted with the store manager, and he asked me to take her home. It wasn't a bad experience; she kept talking about how she'd be willing to sew me something if I provided her with the materials, her labor being repayment, and I kept repeating that her home was literally on my way.

I will admit I was miffed at the manager for putting me on the spot, though.

Yeah that was pretty rude of the manager.  Whether I was acquainted with the manager or not I would have politely refused.  I just do not like strangers.  I also don't like giving rides.  I've already been there done that as far as being treated like a taxi.  Though in my younger days I was definitely more of a door mat. 

Back when I was about 19, I once took a job at a call center doing cold calling sales calls.  Not my thing at all!  It was just to tide me over til I got a better job.  There were some interesting people working there to say the least.  A lot were commuting from some pretty far areas via public transportation.  I don't even know why.  It was minimum wage and unless you were actually good at sales then the amount of money you were making didn't justify the commute. 

Two co-workers approached me for a ride after work.  One of them lived near me and the other just wanted a ride to the bus/train station.  Both were guys.  The one guy who wanted a ride to the bus/train station disappeared after work and me and the other guy were not about to wait around.  They had both put me on the spot so I said yes to be nice. 

The guy I was taking home asked if this was a one time thing before we got in the car and I said yes.  Once we got in the car he started arguing with me about can't we work something out where we could carpool.  I think he might have offered gas money, I don't remember.  He didn't even ask any of this nicely, he just immediately started being argumentative and defensive probably because he knew the answer.  I refused and reiterated that it was a one time thing.  Whether he paid me gas money or not, I just wasn't interested in being someone's taxi.

[s]

The city I used to live in had a woman who would jump into cars at stoplights and instruct the driver where to take her.  It happened to a friend of mine and he actually drove her because she wouldn't get out of the car!  Personally, I would have refused and not moved until she did get out, despite any line up piling up behind me when I didn't go through the light.  If I didn't have my phone handy, hopefully someone behind would have called the police and they could have sorted it out.

I can't believe all the stories of people jumping into cars to get rides like this!  I would have told them to get out and threatened to call the police!  Or, I would have given them a ride... to the police station 

[rain]

slightly off topic -

I once offered an old grandmotherly lady a ride.  It was a sweltering summer day & she was obviously walking home from the grocery store.  She was hesitant about accepting - but we could see my grandma's home from where we were.  I told her that if my grandma was walking home from the store I'd hope someone would offer her a ride - turns out she knew who my grandma was.

[Jocelyn]

I had a roommate in college who picked up a young woman who was hitchhiking. After they'd driven a mile or so, my roomie realized there was a strange smell in the car, and realized the girl was huffing spray paint! She had a heck of a time convincing the girl that she was seriously telling her to get out of the car.

Once when I was traveling with my dad, we found a car beside the road, with a baby car seat in it. Then, about half a mile down the road, we encountered a young woman carrying a baby. My dad stopped and told me to ask her if she wanted a ride to the next town. (My father had a regular business route and he knew exactly how far it was from there to the nearest place she could get help). She was reluctant, but when Dad told her the walk would be about 10 miles, and it was a cold day, she decided to accept our offer.  It was a combination of seeing the disabled car and then seeing the driver walking carrying a baby that made us think she was 'safe', and I'm sure she was reassured by having a young woman and her dad stop to offer help.

[Girlie]

I once stopped to put gas in the tank. I went inside to pay, came out, pumped the gas, and when I walked around to my side of the car, this large guy who looked about my age came over and told me to give him a ride.
I said no, I had somewhere to be and jumped in the car because he was giving me the creeps. As I cranked up my car, he tried to open the door to get in. I always kept my doors locked, thank goodness. I sped off and never looked back - and I've never been to the gas station since, even though it was right down the street from my mom's house, where I lived at the time.

Had my door NOT been locked, and had he actually gotten into the car, I'd have bolted. I would have been too scared to drive off anywhere, and I wouldn't trust anyone who would demand that a complete stranger give them a lift to not hurt me, so...

[Ms_Cellany]

Once, I was taking the bus home and got off to vote, about a mile from my house and in the dark. And immediately realized that that was the last bus of the evening on that route.

I knew one of the poll workers, and mentioned my problem to her. The guy behind me offered a ride. I commented "Someone in a Hawaiian shirt like that couldn't possibly be an ax murderer."

I figured I was safe because he would have written his name and showed ID to vote, and my comment would help remind my friend what he was wearing, should my body turn up. He gave me a ride, and I continued making ax murderer jokes ("Oh, you drive a mini Cooper. NOT the first choice of ax murderers...Wow, it's got a lot of leg room. I could store an ax under here."). I think overall I scared him more than the other way around.

[Miss Understood]

I've had a cross-dressing working-person ask for a ride at 9am on a Saturday morning at Walgreens.  Seems the person who picked him up didn't realize he was a he and not a she.   I said that I was sorry that I wouldn't be able to offer him a ride, but this sort of stuff happens.  No one expects you to honor the request of a complete stranger.

Yeah that's what they all say.   

[twiggy]

Something weird happened to me just tonight. I was at a gas station, using the rest room while DH filled the tank and a woman who had been touching up her make up when I walked in sudden shouted out a question. I didn't think she was addressing me, after all, I was having a bit of a private moment, and for all I knew she had a cell phone. She started asking "are you guys headed to StreetName?"(approx 4mi away) Then a pause and "I'm stranded here, and I need to get to StreetName" By that time I had exited the stall and was walking up to wash my hands. She got  kind of in my space, continuing to move closer to me, and looking at me expectantly. And that's when I realized she had been talking to me the whole time. Then we had the following conversation:

Me "No, actually headed the other way"
Her: "oh, well, I'm stuck here and trying to get to StreetName."
Me: "sorry to hear that, good luck."
Her: "are you sure you're not headed to StreetName? I'm not a crazy person or a weirdo, I"m just stranded here."
Me: drying my hands "Nope, sorry. Actually headed to OtherStreet, completely opposite direction." (actually a little fib, I was headed to CloserStreet only 2mi in the opposite direction, but told her OtherStreet which is 4mi. Mainly because she was giving off a creepy vibe.)
Her: "Sigh, well, do you know anyone who is headed to StreetName?"
Me:  "um, no. I don't personally know anybody at this gas station. I think there's a bus that runs to StreetName. Good luck"

and I bolted. Luckily for me, in the process of getting into my personal bubble while washing my hands, she moved. So when I bolted, she was no longer between me and the door, and I was able to get out of there. It was just weird all around. Especially when she asked if I knew anyone who was headed to StreetName. I'm not a regular at the gas station or anything, why would I know someone there? And it was pretty slow at the time. Unless she wanted me to call someone I did know who just happened to be in the area and headed towards StreetName?

[Tierrainney]

One night my husband came home (at the expected time) late at night. He went immediately to the phone. About two blocks from our house is a stop light and an impaired/drunk/crazy woman had tried to get him to give her a ride and had been stumbling around in the street in the traffic. He always drives with the doors locked, so she couldn't get in the car. The Police told him a unit was already on the way, he wasn't the first to call about her.

Hopefully she wasn't hit by a car before they arrived.

[ShanghaiJill]

I wish my friend Mary would quit picking up strangers.  She has a big heart, but some day her luck is going to run out.

Ironically, I met her when she, um..picked me up when I was stranded.

[portabella]

In these "stranger jumped in the car" stories, did the driver just forget to lock the doors?  Not trying to be snarky, but seems odd.  If doors are locked, no one can jump in.

[rain]

when I was in high school (thirty mumble) years ago, we didn't lock our car doors - unless the car was in a parking lot - My friends and I started after a guy (?homeless?) jumped into a friends car.

[katiescarlett]

That's why it's nice that most newer cars lock automatically either after you put the car in gear, or after you reach 10mph.

[Mental Magpie]

In these "stranger jumped in the car" stories, did the driver just forget to lock the doors?  Not trying to be snarky, but seems odd.  If doors are locked, no one can jump in.

It would never occur to me to lock my doors...the same way I don't lock my doors when I'm in my house.

[Sharnita]

I think a lot of people don't lock their doors.