A Stray-Walker With A Conscience

It's no secret that Mrs. HM despises looks askance at people walking across parking lots directly into the already-moving path of T-Hoe. A giant vehicle, already in motion, has the right-of-way, unless the pedestrians are in a clearly-marked crossing made just for that purpose.

I was backing out of my rightful handicap space at 10Box on Friday afternoon. It was not the space right by the door, but the next one down, past the striped area designated for the cart-return. I was about halfway into the driving lane that passes across the front of the store, when I saw a small woman on my left, on the other side of a car parked in the closest handicap space, pushing her cart out the doors. I was rolling slowing in T-Hoe, my head on a swivel, because these stray-walkers have a way of darting out, and T-Hoe's sensor beeper doesn't work.

Stray-Walker kept pushing that cart. Cutting at an angle from the door, taking a long route that crossed T-Hoe's backing path. She kept coming, even though she looked right at me. Must have seen my eyes roll back in my head with contempt as I slammed on the brakes and came to a complete stop, halfway out of the parking space. Because she started jogging with that cart!

I think it would have been easier to simply stand and wait until I was out of her way. It wasn't raining. It wasn't freezing. Just a sunny mid-40s day. But no. She continued to insert herself into MY way, with that long angled path from door to her car that was parked up in the regular rows. Not even in the row behind me, but the next one over.

At least I see this as progress. A feeling of guilt from a stray-walker. Showing a little hustle, rather than moseying along like she owned that lot, and I was the intruder.