Give and Take
I have been commuting to work for a few months now. Its draining and long. Each way is about 1.5hrs and the only relief i get from this time sink is to compulsively complain about it and garner sympathy from those close to me. The grind has become routine now and i keep myself occupied with an assortment of media injections. There is a lot of tablet movie watching and comic reading going on. Lots of podcast and music listening. My main breaks away from focusing on media are when i transfer from a bus to a skytrain and vice versa. At these times i keep my alertness up and take in my surroundings. In the morning I have become familiar with two people that stand between me exiting the bus and getting on the skytrain.
First off, I have to walk past a grizzled middle aged street guy. He stands at the side of the skytrain entrance with a disposable coffee cup asking for change. His clothes are torn and stained and not particularly fashionable. He has a scraggly grey/brown beard which blends into his hair which is of similar length, colour and unkempt aesthetic. His face is weathered and often carries a look of intoxication. I remember this man from other encounters in that area. On time i was waiting for the bus as he moved about the people and asking them for money. He grew increasingly agitated and finally stormed off mumbling to himself, but only got 10 feet before zeroing in on a discarded coffee cup on the sidewalk. He picked it up and clumsily pulled the lid off and threw it back to the ground. He then slammed back the meager remnants of the coffee cup and then forcefully returned the cup to the ground. He then walked off down the street, seemingly unpacified by his recent consumption. I see this man every day by the skytrain station, looking me in the eye as i shake my head at him.
The other person i see is a girl who distributes the free transit newspaper. She stands at the entrance to the skytrain station and thrusts bundles of paper at strangers. She beams her smile at me as I pass by. I have never not seen her smile. Every person is met with her warm, genuine enthusiasm. I am currently unsure if she recognizes me. I see her smiling at other people just the way she smiles at me. Its just as genuine and welcoming. She has counterparts when i exit the skytrain but none are as impressive as her. Most, apathetically gesture with their wads towards me but I can see that they don't really care. Not like this girl, she cares, she smiles and begs me to take her paper. I walk past her, make eye contact and shake my head.
The giver and the taker are only 20 feet apart but i have never seen them interact. A person so willing to take and another so willing to give still cant satisfy each other. You cant crush up bits of newspaper into a broken light bulb and forget that you don't have a place to sleep, and similarly you cant satisfy your employer by distributing an ad heavy publication to someone who is in no position to buy the advertised products. I move between them and want nothing to do with either. Its going to be a long day after all.
First off, I have to walk past a grizzled middle aged street guy. He stands at the side of the skytrain entrance with a disposable coffee cup asking for change. His clothes are torn and stained and not particularly fashionable. He has a scraggly grey/brown beard which blends into his hair which is of similar length, colour and unkempt aesthetic. His face is weathered and often carries a look of intoxication. I remember this man from other encounters in that area. On time i was waiting for the bus as he moved about the people and asking them for money. He grew increasingly agitated and finally stormed off mumbling to himself, but only got 10 feet before zeroing in on a discarded coffee cup on the sidewalk. He picked it up and clumsily pulled the lid off and threw it back to the ground. He then slammed back the meager remnants of the coffee cup and then forcefully returned the cup to the ground. He then walked off down the street, seemingly unpacified by his recent consumption. I see this man every day by the skytrain station, looking me in the eye as i shake my head at him.
The other person i see is a girl who distributes the free transit newspaper. She stands at the entrance to the skytrain station and thrusts bundles of paper at strangers. She beams her smile at me as I pass by. I have never not seen her smile. Every person is met with her warm, genuine enthusiasm. I am currently unsure if she recognizes me. I see her smiling at other people just the way she smiles at me. Its just as genuine and welcoming. She has counterparts when i exit the skytrain but none are as impressive as her. Most, apathetically gesture with their wads towards me but I can see that they don't really care. Not like this girl, she cares, she smiles and begs me to take her paper. I walk past her, make eye contact and shake my head.
The giver and the taker are only 20 feet apart but i have never seen them interact. A person so willing to take and another so willing to give still cant satisfy each other. You cant crush up bits of newspaper into a broken light bulb and forget that you don't have a place to sleep, and similarly you cant satisfy your employer by distributing an ad heavy publication to someone who is in no position to buy the advertised products. I move between them and want nothing to do with either. Its going to be a long day after all.