I found this letter to the editor posted at Tracy Press. It is from a concerned citizen encouraging runners to wear reflective clothing when out at dark, and describes an incident where the concerned citizen almost ran over a runner they didn’t see. According to the letter, the runner was wearing “a dark hooded sweatshirt and dark pants” and it was 6:50am which presumably means that it was dark out.First of all let me address the main point of the letter. I agree wholeheartedly that if you’re going to be out running in the dark or even at dawn or dusk you should be wearing reflective gear. Most runners I know (myself included) go overboard with this. Before I run in the dark I try and make myself more reflective than a disco ball and just as cool. The thought of getting hit by a car is more than a little unpleasant, which is why I wear reflective shoes, reflective pants, a reflective shirt, reflective gloves and of course the ensemble wouldn’t be complete without my über-cool reflective slap bands. Am I making my point that I agree with the main thrust of the letter; that you should be reflective when you run in the dark? Good. Now onto the part of the letter that rubbed me the wrong way, not at all like a genie in a bottle. The letter ends with the following sentence:
“I would like to be able to get to work without having to call the police because I hit or killed a neighbor.”Yes, that would be very inconvenient for you to have to be late for work just because of the minor little detail that you killed someone. I thought that being safe was reason enough to run in my reflective underpants, but you’re absolutely right, it hadn’t even occurred to me how inconvenient my death would be for the person that hit me. Why, they might be a good half hour late for work, not to mention the ongoing nuisance of having to beat back those vehicular manslaughter charges.
Oh and in case you’re wondering, the reflective underpants are precautionary so that I can still be seen if my pants fall off somewhere along the way and I don’t notice it. They’re not so much reflective as they are glow-in-the-dark. Can we all please stop picturing me in my underwear now and focus on the issue at hand?
REFLECTIVE UPDATE: Cyclist tasered by cop for not having proper lighting on his bike at night.
Article Filed under: "Recounts on how my Habits Annoy Others" and "Wow, People Bitched a lot Less About Me When I was an Alcoholic."
ReplyDeleteI found the reflective underwear left me quite prone to chafing. The indiglo thong, however, has proven quite effective.
As long as they are CLEAN, reflective underpants. Wouldn't want mom to worry.
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ReplyDeleteWho are you foolin? You don't wear undies, homie! :P You look like the "I like the breeze" type of man ;-)
ReplyDeleteThat last line on the letter was terrible. Geez!
ReplyDeleteRefeltive underwear, funny I do the refective sports bar. So it looks like disco balls under my shirt.
Shilingi-Moja, I deleted your comment because when I tried to visit the link that you posted my Anti-Virus software objected.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up on that issue, though. I'll look into it a little closer this evening.
OMG, people are morons. And why do those kind seem to be the ones that need to write letters?
ReplyDeleteIndiglo thong? Now, we're talking...
ReplyDeleteWhat an awful ending to the letter. We'd sure hate someone to be late due to the minor inconvenience of killing someone! Jeez!
ReplyDeleteShe needs Marcy's bitchslap coupon.
ReplyDeleteThat has always been at the forefront of my mind when am getting suited up for and early morning run. Don't get maimed or killed, don't want to inconvenience any one today...,
ReplyDeleteDon't get maimed or killed, don't want to inconvenience any one today...,Don't get maimed or killed, don't want to inconvenience any one today...
Last night I was Mr. Anti Reflective - it goes against the runner code... but I wanted to wear long sleeves and the only one I had (clean) was black. I survived to tell the tale but I'm not boasting - don't try this at home!
ReplyDeleteGetting 'maimed or killed' is indeed a bummer. And I wouldn't want to make somebody late for work, either.
ReplyDeleteIn NYC you see lots of fashion-conscious runners wearing all-black running at night, and sorry to be mean, but they deserve whatever happens to them. I don't dress like a flourescent traffic cone, but I'm not going to be 'asking for it', either. Oh well, maybe we need to weed out the idiots from the pack... Darwinism strikes again...
The reflective update is a good reminder that wearing our reflective gear will probably save us from getting deported. Thanks, Vanilla.
ReplyDelete“I would like to be able to get to work without having to call the police because I hit or killed a neighbor.”
ReplyDeleteWhy because you would have to actually be inconvenienced by having to stop talking or texting to do it?????
That is hilarious! And yes, it is such an inconvience when you run someone down. I hate it when it happens. Throws my whole day off.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Lori...give her the Marcy bitch slap card
ReplyDeleteWhere can I get reflective undies???
ReplyDeleteThis makes me want to go out and get some reflective gear right now, even though I generally try to run on sidewalks. I do go down some roads that aren't as brightly-lit, so I know this would be a good idea. Thanks for the reminder! :)
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