New York Minute 112 - Neighborhood Doorman

Doormen, like bouncers, are suspicious of passers by. Their fundamental function is to let residents enter while keeping everyone else out. 

There are a number of buildings with doormen on my block. These guys see me walk past all the time, day and night, yet they never say anything of acknowledge me as a regular in the neighborhood.

But there is one exception. One night after a run, I walked to the end of the block to catch my breath. The three to eleven guy from a neighboring building was standing on the sidewalk. “I saw you running!” he said.

“Yeah. I’m trying to keep in shape.”

He probably saw me going past repeatedly that night, as I had been doing laps around the block. I enjoy running around the block. It sounds tedious, but it’s appealing, because I never have to wait for a traffic light. 

Anyway, we chatted for a few minutes that evening, this doorman from down the block and I. Whenever he saw me running during his shift, he would step out and say hello; sometimes we would chat about life and work and family and exercise. 

Eventually, he moved to the morning shift. I see him now when I’m on my way to work, but he’s usually with one or two of his colleagues, so we don’t get into long conversations anymore. Those guys stand there stone faced and pretend not to know me in typical New York doorman style. 

The other morning, I was running a little late. When I passed the guy’s building, he was standing alone for a change. We talked about the changing weather and his summer vacation travels with his family. It was nice to catch up again, and I felt badly that I had to hurry off. Those precious moments of human connection make such a big difference in our lives. The people that you know, and know that you can talk to and count on, make life in a big and typically anonymous city livable.

Copyright © 2018 Daniel R. South 

All Rights Reserved