I planned on commuting to work from my home. I live on a narrow two-lane country road with zero shoulder, though. The speed limit is 45, but people (including me) go 55 easily. I've got about two or three miles of this in order to get to the closest four-lane street. I've done the round trip twice, and both times they were the most stressful and chaotic ten to twelve minutes I've experienced in a while.

The drivers here just don't accept cyclists on the road, especially not on a road with a single right of way. They lay on the horn and/or pass within a foot of me and I pray they don't kill me. I'm pedaling my hardest just to get out of there, plus, my heart's in my throat from the jerk that just passed me. I see cyclists there all the time, but maybe they have something I don't. Until I see/grow/steal the balls they have, I've come up with the next best thing: driving out of that road of death and soiled shorts, parking, and biking the rest of the way. I did it once today, and I think it may work. There are small shopping centers on either side of a large intersection with a Walgreens, a Subway, a dry cleaners, etc. There's also a church a couple of blocks down. Have y'all ever heard of anyone getting ticketed for parking in such a place almost all day? Sure, no one knows if you're shopping or praying or what, but what if someone sees you pulling your bike out of the car and riding away?

I thought that parking in a different place, switching between shopping centers would attract less attention, but if y'all don't think it's a big deal, I'll go with a "regular" spot. Am I weird for going to such lengths to avoid my scenic-but-only-in-a-car death trap of a road? Can you tell I really don't want to ride it again? I feel like a cheater for driving what was supposed to be a gas-free commute.