Rideshare Hit or Miss

The last couple of months, I have had experiences with drivers of Lyft and Uber where I wonder what is going on.
Example 1 - from my stroke I have problems with feeling and dexterity on my left side. Buckling a seatbelt on the passenger side is difficult for me. I usually ask the driver if it's okay for me to sit behind them. Usually, they are cool. Or you get a driver like I did a couple weeks ago who refuses to let me sit there even though there is enough room and I explain that I have a TBI and using my left hand is hard. The guy a couple weeks ago said he would circle around so I could hop in on the drivers side. He just drove off and cancelled my ride leaving me stranded.

Example 2 - sometimes you get a driver who loves to blast the radio. Okay fine. I can zone out. But sometimes that radio is a preacher screaming about how homosexuality is an abomination and is the reason why society is failing. I don't let that shit fly as an ally. I asked my driver to please change the radio and let him know the statistics of suicide and homelessness in the LGBTQI population.

Example 3 - this driver just doesn't want to be there or have a passenger. God forbid you say hello. You are just a package to be delivered, not a human being.

Example 4 - GPS is such a mystery and so difficult. This driver blows past every turn they should have taken and gets frustrated when they get honked at trying to drive on the wrong side of the road.

Usually, I am so tired I just try to put up with it so I can get to my destination. Not Thursday March 12,2020, this driver was a combination of 1 to 3. I asked for him to please roll up the window as we got on the highway onramp. That was a hassle. I couldn't really hear what he was saying since a guy was shouting on the radio speaker behind my head. For a good block, I didn't realize it was the radio - I thought some angry guy was yelling on the sidewalk. The driver refused to turn off the radio. I was not feeling comfortable or listened to. I saw a cop car on Mass Ave and told him that if he doesn't want me as a passenger, he can pull over. He said no let me drive you.

He also told me he doesn't know what my problem is. I listed out the several requests I had and his responses. I also asked him to please let me out. He refused. We were in four lane traffic. I was crying at this point. He turned down a more residential street. We approached a stop light, I took off my seat belt and said I was getting out. He said no but he pulled over at least. I got out and walked as fast as I could away from him. I had rough idea where I was. I wound up taking a bus home.

It took three requests for him to let me out. He kept the radio blasting as a form of control/disorientation. Any request I had was a problem from me. I know there is an emergency button in the Lyft app. My gut was yelling at me to get out. My brain was equivocating if escalating the situation would make it worse. That fight or flight impulse has not had a workout for a while. It was how I lived for 24 years. Assessing a situation, preparing for the blow, and figuring out how to get away.

I was a crying mess when I got home. I was proud that I took control of the situation. I hated feeling trapped. I also had to confront that my original abuser is dead. Life is exhausting.