now you really gotta go, so walk on by....
He was dressed as most are in this city, "business attire"... the male version, so a gray suit and shiney shoes. As always, seemingly much more comfortable than the female version, though much less interesting. I can't imagine what it must be like to stand all day in heels higher than I even attempt when going out on the weekends, when I have the added numbing effect of alcohol... but oh do they look glamorous... I can see where the term "power heels" came from. These women mean BUSINESS.
So there he was, in his blah suit and shiney shoes, standing with me on the corner. He beat me to the button before I knew he was even there (daily surprises are what you get when you wander the streets in auditory seclusion... but I love my music). It was a wonder he could even see which way he was going with that book in front of his face. I don't know how many times I've seen anyone actively reading as they walked down the street, but I can't imagine it's very many. For some reason this alone didn't strike me as particularly strange, just maybe a little antisocial and nerdy... what caught me off guard was what the book was.
"The Dangerous Book for Boys"
I've seen it before, in a Walden Books, I think. I heard about it because a big deal was made when it's sequal, "The Daring Book for Girls" came out. There were arguments over whether or not it was sexist to have two different books, or at least books with different titles ("why can't girls be dangerous?"), or whether it was in fact and impowering book for young girls.
Young girls.
Why was this grown man walking down the street with an enormous hard-back copy of a book for kids? I mean, I'll admit I was a little curious about the books, as in I wanted to flip through them to see what all the fuss was about. But he was so entrapped by this book, he couldn't even put it down long enough to walk home. I was sure he'd get hit by a car at some point, how could he look where he was going?
I wanted to say something when I first recognized the book, like "oh, I've heard of those!" until I thought better of it. Something about the strangeness of the situation lead me to believe there was a reason he was reading as he walked around in public. I guess I assumed he wouldn't take so eagerly to conversation.
When the light changed he walked really fast so he was out of my life pretty quickly.
And then I had smile to myself when I saw an old lady driving a car with the bumper sticker "I brake for cats!".
So there he was, in his blah suit and shiney shoes, standing with me on the corner. He beat me to the button before I knew he was even there (daily surprises are what you get when you wander the streets in auditory seclusion... but I love my music). It was a wonder he could even see which way he was going with that book in front of his face. I don't know how many times I've seen anyone actively reading as they walked down the street, but I can't imagine it's very many. For some reason this alone didn't strike me as particularly strange, just maybe a little antisocial and nerdy... what caught me off guard was what the book was.
"The Dangerous Book for Boys"
I've seen it before, in a Walden Books, I think. I heard about it because a big deal was made when it's sequal, "The Daring Book for Girls" came out. There were arguments over whether or not it was sexist to have two different books, or at least books with different titles ("why can't girls be dangerous?"), or whether it was in fact and impowering book for young girls.
Young girls.
Why was this grown man walking down the street with an enormous hard-back copy of a book for kids? I mean, I'll admit I was a little curious about the books, as in I wanted to flip through them to see what all the fuss was about. But he was so entrapped by this book, he couldn't even put it down long enough to walk home. I was sure he'd get hit by a car at some point, how could he look where he was going?
I wanted to say something when I first recognized the book, like "oh, I've heard of those!" until I thought better of it. Something about the strangeness of the situation lead me to believe there was a reason he was reading as he walked around in public. I guess I assumed he wouldn't take so eagerly to conversation.
When the light changed he walked really fast so he was out of my life pretty quickly.
And then I had smile to myself when I saw an old lady driving a car with the bumper sticker "I brake for cats!".