I spent most of the day after production working from our office on Winewood Ave., and when I left, I saw a guy in a wheelchair pushing his way right down the middle lane of Maple. He seemed to be having a hard time making it up a hill, so I asked him if he needed a push, and he said sure. He’s been living here for four years — “since they cut off my legs,” he told me. He’s been a smoker since he was 12, around 40 years, and he needed to run out for cigarettes. When the sidewalks aren’t clear enough for his wheelchair, he goes down the middle of the road, and everyone in their cars can just deal with it. 

I pushed him almost to Liberty before I wished him luck and walked back to my car feeling guilty and sad. I wish there was a way for this person to get to the store safely. Life can be really unfair sometimes. 

It was a weird energy to bring to the Shine and Rise happy hour at Bamboo, but I rallied and talked to a lot of interesting people:

  • A woman at the helm of a startup that offers AI styling services. She started it because she says doesn’t have a natural sense of style, but said she feels weird about playing into a system that expects women to look a certain way. I pointed out that giving up an opportunity isn’t going to make the system go away, and she’s offering a lower-cost option for women to be taken more seriously in the workplace. 
  • Liz Barney and I chatted about the transition (and trade-off) from the adventure life to responsibility/stability.
  • John German’s daughter. She was wearing sweatpants and a long-sleeve t-shirt with a sequin snowflake on it, and she burped while she was talking to me and, with a shrug and a tilt of her LaCroix can, said, “Bubbles.” I was overwhelmed with admiration for this person who seemed completely unconcerned with playing the game. Also, she told me what she does for work, and it was stratospherically far above my head.
  • A gal from Detroit whose job is to help companies streamline, whatever it takes. I asked her how she makes hard decisions, and she looked up and shrugged with a little smile, and I was overwhelmed with admiration for this person who had the superpower of unapologetically doing what needs to be done. 

Bright and early the next (very cold) morning, I went to Argus Farm Stop for Coffee With Brooke. It was a complete success: seven people came to talk to me!

First up were Sara and Gaurav; she came here for school, and he grew up here. They told me they were interested in investigative journalism and deep storytelling, not clickbait. They pointed out that the ’70s were fifty years ago; what is Ann Arbor in the 2020s? Kathy talked to me about pedestrian safety. Tori said she loves marketplace changes and misses restaurant reviews. Ryan and Alex taught me about local food systems. And Trianne and I discovered a shared love for “Gilmore Girls.” 

It was such a treat, and I can’t wait for the next one.