Thanks for the offer

I've started taking public transportation, thanks to the graduate student government negotiating a fantastic deal with LA Metro that makes our fares insanely cheap during the school year. And, I'm down the street from one of the Red Line stations, so I even get to take the real subway.

Because LA public transit, though, is so disjointed and on a grid, I have to transfer a lot. And sometimes waiting at the bus stops in between transfers takes awhile. This, incidentally, is the worst part of taking the bus. I hear a lot of horror stories about weird people on the bus, and they certainly are there, but with my headphones and book I'm mostly left alone. There was one guy, one time, that asked me to dinner, and when I politely declined, he wondered why "the most powerful man in the world" couldn't even get a date. High comedy! Anyway.

I was sitting at a stop a few weeks ago in my neighborhood from last year, which is neither the best nor the worst of LA neighborhoods. It's had a sketchy past, but it's pretty tame now. And as I'm sitting there, this guy comes up from behind me (poor choice #1) and says

"Excuse me, but do you know this is like, the worst neighborhood imaginable?"

What I should have said: "You don't have much of an imagination, do you?"
What I actually said: "No, it's really not." (REVEL IN MY WIT!)

Then he says, "Well, I just thought I'd offer you a ride so that you don't have to wait here for the bus."

What I said: "Um, no thanks, I'm okay."
What I was thinking: So, the alternative to waiting here, with several other people around, and getting onto a heavily monitored bus, is to get in the car alone with you, an absolute stranger?

I'll pass.