| 464 | Bicycling | 2011-08-30 |
Yesterday, I had to go grocery shopping. Luckily, we live in a neighborhood with a store about a half mile away. I usually ride to the store.
Going down the aisles of the store, I had to limit my selections by what I thought I could carry home on the bike. I finally quit shopping and proceeded to the checkout. A young girl was working the counter, as cashier.
As she scanned the goods, I waited to bag them. I normally bag my own groceries; but especially when I am carrying them on a bike. The heavy items must go into the bag first to keep from squishing everything else in the bag. I asked the cashier to please send the drinks to me first, so I could pack them (the heaviest items) in the bottom of the bag.
The inquisitive cashier wanted to then know if I wanted to put everything in the bike bag. I told her, "yes, I was riding a bike."
As the conversation continued I asked, "do you have a bike?"
"No, but I want one," she replied.
"Well, you should definitely get one. Riding is good exercise and it is a good cheap form of transportation."
"Exercise? I want a motorcycle. What are you talking about?"
"Oh, I was talking about a bicycle."
"A bicycle," she said in disbelief, "I'm not going to ride a bicycle!"
I just smiled and wished her a good day.
I picked up the large heavy bag and slung it over my shoulder. She gave me a 'are-you-crazy' kind of look as I walked out of the store.
Perhaps the young cashier lived to far away to ride a bicycle as transportation. She might not even known how to ride a bike. (My mother did not know how to ride a bike.) Regardless, she did not even consider a bicycle as a transportation alternative.
To be honest, her narrow minded view was kind of sad to me. She probably only thought of bicycles as toys; but maybe someday ...
Happy bicycling as transportation trails