Not 'tough', but 'absolute' in my right to be on the road. I have a 'thick skin' from experience. Every time I 'played the game'(hugged the curb, got on the sidewalk), I have had more close calls and accidents, than when I was on the road 'taking the lane'. The only time I was hit from behind, was when I was stopped in a dual-turn(both directions) lane, waiting to merge into traffic southbound, after crossing the northbound lanes.

I was also talking earlier, with a handyman that is working on my neighbor's house. He commented that AAA finally admitted, the DC-Metro region has the worst traffic congestion in the U.S.

Of course that is debatable. But it would account for a lot of the frequent hostility from motorists', towards cyclists.