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Hitch a Ride

In the past few weeks I have been seeing something that I have not noticed for quite some time.  I have noticed a number of people hitchhiking.
Was that out of fashion for some time?  It took me by surprise to see a hitchhiker so I'm thinking this hasn't been such a used means of transportation in the recent past.
I guess with the price of gas lately it should not be so surprising that it would make a resurgence.
OR. maybe I have just been hiding out in my own little world lately and haven't noticed that hitchhiking is a popular thing.  There are whole web sites devoted to the hobby, like this one.
I haven't stopped to pick anyone up.  I did see an attractive, well dressed young woman.  I did not notice if she had a companion waiting behind a tree.  I saw two young men with a sign for where they were headed. 
I also saw one man, not at all well dressed, who was wearing a large hat swathed in layers and layers of plastic wrap.  I could only think, "Good luck with that."
Sites like the one linked above have all kinds of tips and suggestions for hitchhikers.  I hope some one will add "Don't be looking so weird," to the list--if it's not there already.
Would you ever pick up a hitchhiker?

P.S. I may have to dig out the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series.  I remembering laughing hysterically through those years ago...with my peculiar sense of humor.
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Comments

  1. Linda MyersJune 5, 2011 at 9:57 PM

    Years ago we were traveling the backroads of Vermont and my husband picked up a hitchhiker near an addiction treatment center. We didn't realize until he was in the car that he was quite intoxicated. We dropped him off a few miles down the road and opened all the windows to air out the car.

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  2. JuneJune 6, 2011 at 5:50 AM

    There is an elderly man who hitchhikes all over this area. He dresses up like a soldier and swears and makes obscene gestures to people who pass him by. I hear that he never was in the service...

    I think I would not pick up a hitchhiker. When I was young I might have thought about it, but I don't think I ever did.

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  3. marciamayoJune 6, 2011 at 7:09 AM

    My Daddy, God bless him, picked up hitchhikers all over Georgia back in the day. I can't imagine that it's now back as hobby. Sounds dangerous to me, but probably no worse than sky diving.

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  4. AnonymousJune 6, 2011 at 8:39 AM

    When I was a kid, my brothers never hesitated to hitch hike. Then a few nationally covered hitch hike murders changed most people's view of it.
    Perhaps gas prices but also people out of work that have lost their cars is bringing it back.
    I'm too easy a target to take a chance.
    Arkansas Patti

    ReplyDelete
  5. Susan AdcoxJune 6, 2011 at 8:39 PM

    I've been out at my dad's a lot lately, doing the caregiving thing, and I kept seeing an older man, heavyset and using a cane, who was trying to catch a ride. I figured he just needed a ride to the grocery store, and every time I passed him, I felt guilty. Finally one day I stopped. Without hesitation he climbed in. When I asked him where he needed to go, he named a hospital in the next town! I told him I was on my way to the grocery store, and he told me that there was a grocery store right next to the hospital! I took him where he needed to go, but I'm not stopping for him again.

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  6. BarbJune 6, 2011 at 9:23 PM

    This is a well-kept secret about me: I once hitch hiked from Ocean City, NJ, to Atlantic City. It's funny because a minister picked us up (I went with a girlfriend - we wanted to hear folk singers at a coffee shop so that will give you an idea of the era.) He was so worried about us, he asked when we wanted to go back and showed up to take us home. (We were working at the shore over summer break from college.) I often pick up young kids hitching down or up my road in the winter - poor things, they're nearly frozen!

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  7. Auntie sezzzzzz...June 8, 2011 at 10:29 AM

    Nightshade! Deadly Nightshade! So cool! What am I talking about? Your answer, to what my pretty little weed flower is. :-)

    Oh I love it. That I have Nightshade growing around here. No, I'm not gonna' mix up a potion. -giggles- But I do love the sound of it.

    Thank you!

    ~♥~

    ReplyDelete
  8. Jenn JilksJune 8, 2011 at 11:12 AM

    I'd be scared to hitchhike!

    ReplyDelete

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