To Yield or Not To Yield

Last month, I was out running errands when "the incident" happened.

Driving here has been a challenge. Getting used to the steering wheel being located on the right side of the car, navigating the roundabouts and cruising on the left hand side of the road has caused my heart to hammer in my chest on more than one occasion. I've often wondered if the transition would have been easier had we chosen to bring our Pilot with us. I was comfortable in that vehicle. I knew how to park the thing, too. Did I mention that I have absolutely no depth perception now that I have to approach everything from the opposite side?

Anyhoo..

So, I head out one morning to the local grocery store and put my signal on to turn left into the parking lot. At the same time, a car is approaching from the other direction with their right turn signal on. I make the turn and hear the blare of the other car's horn which startled the shit out of me. All of the sudden, I'm chewing on my heart, my fingers are tingling and I'm frantically checking my lane to ensure I am sitting on the correct side of the road. And then it dawns on me. I was supposed to have yielded to the car that was crossing traffic, to make the right hand turn. It's one of those quirky Kiwi laws that was put into place years ago to help mitigate traffic flow when all of the roads were just single lane.

So, I quickly park, which was a freak show unto itself, hop out of the car and walk towards the other car, which by this time, had found a parking spot a mere four spots away from my own. Its occupants were just disembarking.

"I am so sorry," I said, "That road rule is the one that I can't seem to remember. I apologize."

The lady (and driver of the car), appeared to be in her late fifties, well-groomed and clearly unhappy as evidenced by the squint of her eyes and the contempt that twisted her mouth into a sneer.

"YOU FUCKING FOREIGNERS," she spat. Her passenger, a man I presumed to be her husband, turned abruptly and fled into the grocery store.

I wish I was kidding.

I felt like she had kicked me in the gut. Her response was so unexpected that my throat tightened and tears threatened. New Zealand just doesn't have mean people. I was absolutely gobsmacked.

Then, I got angry.

I am keenly aware that as soon as I open my mouth, people will know that I'm an import and thus, I am usually pretty careful to be sure that I am representing my own country properly. That day, I didn't manage very well.

"Are you usually this aggressive," I asked, "Or are you just saving all of your love for me?"

Lame, right? Magnificently so.

As the day wore on, I thought up much better retorts but I never quite got over her venom. It was so....personal.

The irony of the whole situation is that this past Sunday, that antiquated yield law was abolished. I thought about that lady and wondered how she was adjusting to the change.

You know, I bet she thought about me once or twice, too.