I said NO!

[Anakah]

I had just gotten off of work, spent an hour waiting for my hubbie to get off of work and thought it would be nice to pick up some meat so I could make tacos. Well, hubbie's back was hurting and so I told him to stay in the car and I'd go.

Well, as soon as I got out of the car and started walking to the store I saw this girl starting to approach me, I was thinking oh hell, she's gonna ask for money.

SG: Stupid girl

SG: Hey, I was wondering if you'd take me to the casinos.

Me: No. I just came from there.

SG: Please! I will give you gas money.

Me: Nooo.

I start to walk away from her and towards the doors.

SB: Stupid boy

SB: Hey.... Yeah we had to call the cops.... (he starts talking about shit that I didn't care about)

I tried to run in before he would ask me for a ride too.

I got in, did a bit of shopping. I didn't feel real well to begin with.

I was finally done shopping and headed up to the cashier. I know the cashier cuz he used to work where I work.

C: How's everything?

Me: It was okay until I got bombarded by strangers on the way in begging for a ride.

I was hoping they'd do something and tell the two to knock it off. I thought you weren't supposed to be able to badger customers and get away with it but nobody cared.

SL: some lady (she was another employee)

SL: Do YOU need the taxi?

I looked around trying to figure out who she was talking to.

Me: Me? Uhh... no. I have a car. Maybe it's the ones outside?

I kept getting asked over and over again by different ppl if I had called a cab.

So, I finally pay and leave. I get halfway to my car when....

SB: Hey!! We need a ride. Its an emergency! Can you take us?

Me: No.

And I started to almost run away from the two.

SB: But we'll give you gas money!

Me: No.

Dude, you're creepy, I don't know you, I just came from there and I don't care if you'll give me gas money, take the goddamn bus or a taxi!

Then...

SB: Hey, do you know when the bus comes?

I growled. LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!

I told them no and ran my ass into my car. This shit always happens when I am by myself. I shoulda made hubbie come in with me.

I do not like ppl begging me for rides when they have options. And its like 1am. Do you really think I don't want to go home?? Crazy asses. How did they get there in the first place?? I was deeply annoyed.

[shadowpanda]

They would give you money for gas but wouldn't call a taxi? That birngs up soooo many red flags. I'm sorry you had to deal with that and I'm glad (although it was a wholly unpleasant situation) that is wasn't any worse.

[PepperElf]

yeah. makes me wonder if they had creepy shit planned.

[candyshopgirl]

The hubby had an experience like that at the laundry mat. The homeless guy wouldnt leave him the hell alone. And when the hubby went out to the car to listen to music, the guy knocked on the car window. The hubby told him to leave or he was calling the police. I dont how much money they were offering, you let a stranger into your car thats how you end up on the evening news

[Sapphire Silk]

They would give you money for gas but wouldn't call a taxi? That birngs up soooo many red flags. I'm sorry you had to deal with that and I'm glad (although it was a wholly unpleasant situation) that is wasn't any worse.

Taxi's are expensive. I took a cab once from my house to the hospital when I got sick. It cost me over $20 to go a few miles.

But the comment on the safety and wisdom of giving rides to total strangers always holds true. I never pick up hitchhikers.

[blas]

We never really had panhandlers and random people trying to beg for rides (save for drunk college kids at the bar on the weekends) up until recent years. Nowadays it's not out of the ordinary to see someone with a cardboard sign standing by the main drags on the medians. The worst part is, they stand in just the right spots where people turning left always have to wait for the green arrows.....I am so scared that one of them is going to try to knock on my window.

[zombiequeen]

There's a guy that's doing that now out by the mall where we live.
Sad part is, I've seen him get dropped off at this corner several times, and I've also seen several people give him rides.
He's a college student, sure, and his friend who drops him off goes the other direction, but still...

Hubby has started locking the doors and the windows when we go by there, because I have to have my window cracked or I get carsick, he throws the lock on so they can't try to pull the window down.

[blas]

My car has a safety feature that all the doors lock when I shift out of park, and doesn't unlock until I take the key out.

[zombiequeen]

I wish my car did, unfortunately it's a '94 so it doesn't. Of course, it's not that hard to remember (we're both kind of paranoid) to lock the doors as soon as we are settled in.

My mum just told me a funny story about her car. It's yellow and the back windows are tinted, she said that once, she pulled over to see the hours sign on a store window, and someone who wasn't paying attention Opened her backseat door and got in! They rattled off an address and my mum was like "I'm sorry, what? I'm not a cab. This town's too small to have cabs!" Apparently the person wasn't from around here, but it was like...wtf?
They were apologizing and everything too, and mum just laughed it off.
As funny as that might be, I'd probably scream.

[MoonCat]

Yeah, that's red flag city. If they had money to give you for gas, they had money for the cab-- and btw they say they're going to the casino...where you need money to play. So either they have money and could pay for the cab (and too bad if it eats into their gambling money), or they had no money at all and were looking for someone to rob.

[ThirdGenRetail]

See, this is one of the reasons I'm glad I don't drive.

That and it's now illegal in my town to stand on the medians doing that, unless it's a Fill The Boot thing(They have city approval). Doesn't stop them, sadly... I just wish I knew the non-emergency number for the police department to report these people.

[Damien]

I have had this waiting for a cab outside a taxi rank... got a bit scary too

[MickiGa1]

This happened at our local big K. A early 20's couple came upon an old lady and asked to drive them to their house. She let them in and drove where they said to go. She stopped the car then they pulled a knife and a gun and pistol whipped her and threw her out of the car...HARD and took her car. I always carry my stun gun and pepper spray. I live in a very high criminal area. I also can start my truck from inside my house/store so I just have to jump in and go.

[MadMike]

WTF is it with people asking total strangers for a ride? It's potentially dangerous for everyone involved. Even if the person asking for the ride has good intentions, the one giving the ride may not.

The same thing happened to me a few months ago. It was another karaoke night, and friend (who recently signed up here as "Twiztid" and posted in another one of my threads) had come along with me. Her husband was sitting this one out for whatever reason, so it was just me and her. They live in a part of the city that I'd rather stay the hell away from, but right now they don't have a working vehicle, and if they want to come out with me, I usually have to pick them up.

I was bringing her home, and parked along the road. Some guy came up to the passenger side and said something to her that I couldn't hear, but I heard her tell him to "just keep walking."

Instead, he came around to my side. I opened the window just a crack, and he asked me if I could give him a ride somewhere. I just looked at him and said, "I don't know you!" He just said OK and walked off.

We didn't see where he went, so now we were really nervous. We didn't know if he was gone, or if he was hiding somewhere, getting ready to jump her as soon as she got out of the car. So she called her husband and had him come outside and see her safely inside. As soon as I saw them go in, I hauled ass out of there.

I was so freaked out, I kept looking behind me even though I was almost to the highway at this point, and there was no way he could have kept up with me on foot. I called her to let her know I was safely out of the area, and I wondered aloud what his motive could have been. She told me he was probably looking to get me to drive somewhere quiet so he could rob me.

I am so glad I don't live over there. I wish my friends didn't either.

[bainsidhe]

So if this entire experience wasn't creepy enough, it happened at 1am? Oh. Hell. No.