Zaphod: Why'd you pick up hitchhikers? Trillian: I didn't. The ship did.

3 months after I graduated high school I moved from the very small Valley Springs to the big city (for me anyway) of Sacramento. Without a job, or license. I learned to drive there. City driving and country driving are 2 very different things, I prefer city driving if you’re wondering, but not San Francisco driving, that’s in a league of it’s own. In the city, if you needed a ride, usually you could convince a friend or neighbor within walking distance to drop you somewhere for a couple of bucks, or there’s always public transportation to fall back on. Because of this I very rarely saw hitchhikers there. When I did see them, there was not even a second thought as I drove by their dangerous looking asses. When I started driving back and forth to Calaveras is when I noticed them. I guess I’d just assumed they’d all given up. But in the sticks, not very many places are within walking distance. Hell, it would have taken me all day if I’d decided to walk to my high school from my house. So hitchhiking is more prevalent. I’d always drive right past them, knowing the “rules” for a single girl. But then 1 day I drove by 2 teenagers, plaid flannel shirts, clean, but plain, with big smiles and a sign; “we promise we’re nice!” And I wanted to pick them up. It was right at the bottom of 13 corners, and by the time I registered that thought I was past a place I could stop. Or so I told myself. I wanted to stop, but I didn’t, because what if. I can’t stop now, seeing as 95% of the time it’s just me and the baby, and when I’m not with the baby it’s a little irresponsible to put myself in danger just to do a social experiment that would make me feel better about humanity, and my place within it. Someday though. Someday I’ll pick up a hitchhiker, maybe more then one, and I’ll take them as far as I’m going. When they leave my car, I’ll smile that there’s still decent people that need a bit of help, or adventurous people that put their trust in others to get them where they need to go, and I’ll have heard a bit of their story. And they’ll leave with the knowledge that even though the rules say they should still be walking, people in this world still trust strangers occasionally, and maybe they’ll pass it on.