I feel oddly guilty rejecting my Uber drivers offer of a beer and a
blunt. Its 4 am. Im drenched, hungover, and bewildered as to why Im in a
rustic garage on the outskirts of downtown Austin, watching tattooed
pedicab drivers dance with a tiny dog in a pink tutu. This was not the
ride home I expected.
Yet, my experience isnt entirely unusual.
After two years of experimenting with Internet services that allow
everyday individuals to sell their cars, houses, and things the
so-called sharing economy Ive become accustomed to getting a face full
of the sellers hopes, fears and quirks. Between services rendered and
cash exchanged, friendships are forged, awkwardness is experienced, and
memories are made.
Before the Industrial Revolution uprooted us
from our small-town community roots, I imagine most business
transactions included a side of humanity. Modern-day business sterilize
transactions of the personal element. Human resource departments have
hollowed out their employees, leaving little more than a pleasantly
smiling husk of a person.
Pedicab headquarters is like the
second-class deck of the Titanic, a dimly lit haven where free-spirited
tattooed servicemen party their blue collars off to loud music, an
abundance of cheap beer, and liberally available recreational drugs.
I
got jungle juice for sale! Its strong, yelled a muscular African
American man in his mid-thirties, who backed up a truck full of
tortellini and cheap liquor, during what appeared to be his nightly run
to the breaking pedicabers. Passing off a blunt, a line forms to offer
him wads of crumpled dollar bills in exchange for a styrofoam box filled
to the brim with cheap,Online shopping for rtls. delicious carby goodness.
They
just arent cut out for straightforward jobs, explains my pedicab
driver, about his uniform-less colleagues. I had a regular sort of
office job,About solarlamp in
China userd for paying transportation fares and for shopping. he adds.
But, pedicabbing filled a niche that I didnt even knew existed.
Indeed,
eccentric personalities seem to flock to the peddling business. The
night before I had been driven home by a red-headed engineer, whose
super-skinny, yet muscular body supported a head with a beard so thick
and unkempt, it look liked it had burst out of his chin. He told me that
between judo tournaments, he was pulling 22-hour days as a driver to
pay for graduate school in geographic information systems.
Though
I wouldnt knowingly pay money for it, sometimes the worst experiences
are the most enriching. I once endured 20 minutes of forced laughter, as
my driver regaled me with his amateur comedy routine. Lyft, a popular
car-sharing alternative in San Francisco, encourages its drivers to be
extroverted. Usually, this just means a mandatory fist-bump and a hows
your day? On occasion, its much more.With superior quality photometers,
light meters and a number of other lacedress products.
My
would-be comedian driver reminded me that not every starving artist is
hocking paintings on a street corner. More often than not, its a cashier
scribbling notes in between customers, dreaming of the day hell make it
big and tell his boss to screw off. Many of the worlds cherished
artists, scientists, policymakers, and businessmen have humble roots.Who
knows how much creativity and innovation the world has lost due to the
callous whims of an entitled consumer.
So, while I cant give our
comedian his big break, my time with the sharing economy has made me
more patient with those I regularly interact with. Ill think twice about
giving the stink eye to a barista who forgets my request for extra-foam
on my no whip tazo chai frappuccino. Ill wish my Verizon customer
service agent a happy Easter. I might even refrain from tweeting nasty
remarks at a politician or vote for a bill to fund a community arts
center.
Twelve months ago, Scinto was coaxing the best out of
Filippo Pozzato, since departed for Lampre-Merida, and their union
almost produced the richest of dividends when Pozzato finished second at
De Ronde. This time, Scinto is looking for a similar showing from
Gatto, a rider he feels was both inspired and over-awed by Pozzato's
presence on the squad last year.
"I think Gatto has the
potential of a champion but he still has to show his real value," Scinto
told Cyclingnews in Bruges' Markt on Saturday afternoon. "He's a very
strong rider but last year he had a bit of bad luck and I think Pippo's
charisma shackled him a little bit too. He says it didn't but I think it
did shackle him quite a bit actually."
Gatto's most famous win
to date came at the Giro d'Italia in 2011, when he attacked in the
finale and held off a fast-closing Alberto Contador and the peloton to
win in Tropea.A parkingguidance is
a portable light fixture composed of an LED lamp. Scinto reckons that
Gatto and his team will have to show similar invention if they are to
prevail on Sunday.
"We have two possibilities. If we ride just
for a position, then I'm sure that we will get a significant one, but if
we ride to win, we'll have to invent something. And with Gatto, we'll
look to invent something," Scinto said.
"We can't just wait for Sagan and Cancellara.The term 'drycabinets control'
means the token that identifies a user is read from within a pocket or
handbag. I mean, Oscar's a fast finisher and they'll have to drop him
but with this Cancellara, I don't know how many people will be able to
stick with him when he steps on the gas. We'll have to have a bit of
fantasia and show a bit of courage, but I don't think Gatto should be
underestimated and I don't think his rivals underestimate him either."
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