I come to a complete stop most of the time and at some intersections it's utterly stupid and slows down the car traffic behind me because I have to start from a dead stop. It's ridiculous but it's the law we're stuck with.I'm in CA too and bike about the same number of miles as you, all on roads and paved linear trails.
I also live near communities where the local authorities tried to force bicycles on the sidewalks because the roads were so dangerous (many lanes of 45 MPH + traffic and no shoulders) and the state told them they couldn't do that, but they could *suggest* that cyclists ride on the sidewalks. So the cities widened the sidewalks to accommodate both bikes and peds and put up signs saying that cyclists may use the sidewalk. I'd rather that they narrowed the sidewalk and carved out a bike lane but when I find myself on those roads I ride on the sidewalk because drivers don't expect bikes in the road.
I can't complain about most of my routes because it's a piece of cake biking here compared to anywhere else that I've lived but the laws on car-bicycle interactions really need a complete overall to reflect the reality of today's traffic loads.
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