I love bike messengers!
I hate bike messengers!
I’ll take the good with the bad but I give both of these statements the same weight, and cannot take either one seriously. The first statement is often overheard at a party, spoken by a young woman who doesn’t really know any messengers but thinks they look cool, or wear colorful clothing or have nice legs. Seeing packs of messengers hanging out at a coffee shop. Or bored office workers seeing only the occasional messenger dart in and out of the elevator, they catch a whiff of “the smell of freedom” and smile.
The second statement is often spoken by bus drivers or cab drivers or building security guards, who don’t really know any messengers but see only the antagonistic responses they antagonize out of the messengers they come in contact with. Or another type of bored office worker that catches a whiff of that “smell of freedom” on the elevator and scowls.
An attorney that hands me a court filing at the last minute and says “thank you so much” because she wants me to get there in 5 minutes, will have no problem honking and yelling at me on the street 20 minutes later, when she’s trying to get back to Mercer Island and I’m white-lining next to her BMW on 5th Avenue. Love the service you provide. Hate the way you do it.
Love. Hate. Whatever. Some people love the essence, the spirit, the idea of messengerness. These same qualities bring out the hate in other people. I’m saying both sides are uninformed. Many people have trouble with the big picture and can only focus on a little portion of it. The “smell of freedom” is a great concept, a philosophy, a way of life. But when you get up close and experience it, it doesn’t smell so great.
Add Comment