dear shiny lady

The other day a shiny lady in a shiny convertible tried to get my be-bicycled self to turn left in front of her, even though I had a stop sign and she had come to complete halt on a busy road where she definitely did not have a stop sign.  I was in the left turn lane of a quiet side street, waiting to turn onto a four lane road.  It's actually a really easy left for me - there's one of those spots in the middle where you can wait, and nearby lights in both directions mean there's often nice big gaps in traffic.  It was, therefore, somewhat shocking when she came to a complete stop and tried to wave me in front of her as cars came up behind her.  Wait, WHAT?  That is not how traffic works!

One of my biggest pet peeves is when drivers treat helmeted, respectful cyclists like errant pedestrians in need of special treatment.  Treat me like a car, please.  Yes, it's nice if you give me a little extra space, or go out of your way to avoid spraying a puddle in my face.  However, it's both unnecessary and unsafe for you to break the rules of traffic and expect me to do the same to gratify you. 

I realize the shiny lady was just trying to be nice, but she was going about it in all the wrong ways.  Even after I shook my head to her "go in front of me!" gesture, she continued to insist (via complex hand gestures) that I go.  I had my headphones in, though (no I didn't, mom) which make me feel like no one can hear me and I yelled at her.  "I have a STOP SIGN.  YOU have the right of way.  GO."  This included jabbing fingers in the direction of said stop sign.  She threw up her hands, exasperated with my refusal to let her treat me like some toddler on a tricycle, and roared off.

Lessons learned, people.  Treat cyclists like you would any other car, and don't try to make them turn in front of you when you have the right of way, because that just makes everyone uncomfortable and unsure.  Lastly, yelling at strangers in convertibles is kind of fun.  I recommend everyone try it at their soonest convenience.

Un. Impressed.