Have you ever cycled to work on ice and snow, in –5°?
If the answer is no, I can report with some authority that such a venture is not actually as bad as it sounds. There seems to be a greater amount of public spiritedness on snowy days than on your average day, when cyclists are generally sprayed, honked or sent wobbling towards the curb by harassed drivers.
And, whilst I skidded along, I had a Profound Thought.
It went something like this: people who live in parts of the world where there is more to contend with physically (harsh climates, lower comfort levels, etc.) must have less time to think and ruminate about the small stuff. And there is something very intellectually liberating about devoting more time to the physical side of life. In fact, perhaps the slightly twisted downside of our machine-dominated society is that, when our muscles are underused, our mind starts to twitch...
OK, I admit, this Thought is not quite as profound or original as it first appeared.
But it’s hard to think clearly when you’re freezing and looking out for ice patches.
Which I guess is sort of the point…
1 comment:
Well, I have my own theory about that: to make it short, I call it "the habits". The first time I went to my new job, I was so focused on everything (is it the right bus? is it the right stop? is it the right metro? is it the right stop? am I going to be late? etc.) that I couldn't think about anything else. But as I'm getting used to it, I don't even need to look up at the stations. I kind of feel when it's my time to go out. I'm sure we've all felt the same. The habits so part of human being that we don't see them settling. Hawful, but so relaxing...
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