Idiot Scooter.

I was dropping some folk at the airport yesterday.  It wasn't terribly busy at the terminal, but there were a few cars already at the curb when I pulled up.  There was a spot in front of an SUV and in back of a handicap marked area, so I pulled around and was about to back in when I noticed the driver in the spot in front of me get into the car and prepare to leave.  So I waited a couple of seconds to see if I could just pull forward to park.  Just then a cop on a segway wheels up on the curb and he's looking at me while he says something, but I can't hear from there with my windows up.  So he wheels down the handicap curb-cut in front of my car and over to my window.  I would have backed into the space behind me by this point, but now I'm not even gonna put my car in gear with this guy scooting around me.  I roll my window down and he says "First of all you're not a handicapped."  I resisted the urge to say something like "I'm sorry, are you?" and told him "I know, I was about to back into that space (gesturing behind) when I saw the car in front of me was about to leave (gesturing ahead)"  He seemed pretty put out, and maintained "you can't park here" while I responded "OK" trying my best to keep the "you stupid sack of crap" inflection from my voice.  He teetered there for a couple seconds while I waited with my eyebrows slightly raised.  I'm not sure if he was waiting for me to say something else or move the car, but then he wheeled back over to the curb and up the tiny ramp to continue whatever it is you do at an airport on a segway.  I parked the car not in a handicapped spot once he was gone.

So maybe you already can see where I'm going with this.  Why the hell is that dude on a segway?  Yeah, I guess he saved a couple of steps, but he was still standing the whole time.  How much more relaxing is standing than walking?  And didn't it cost like ten grand to buy that thing, not to mention the power it takes to charge and operate it?  And why is it a good idea to have him interacting with cars?  I just don't understand at all.  Anybody else been in a car with a segway nearby?  I don't like driving too near motorcycles for fear of something going wrong, but I flat-out refused to operate the car with that thing ever near me.  Its kinda like when there's a puppy or toddler in the parking lot and you know in your gut that the car shouldn't move till his mommy comes and picks him up.