The Invisible style
Guy loved to spend early mornings in the Village, sitting at a sidewalk table savoring a hot cup of coffee, (Americano/3/4 fill) and doing the times crossword. He also loved watching the not fully awake masses on their way to their cubicles, their cash registers, their labor. People watching was his favorite pastime. It was a game to him trying to guess what they were thinking or what they did for a living. Like the young man who just went by on a skateboard, dressed in a suit and tie wearing a porkpie hat and black 'Van' skater shoes. I.P guy at Great West Life, he guessed.
His second most favorite thing in the world was eavesdropping, whether on public transport, in a cue or sitting at a sidewalk table like now, he always had his antenna tuned for anything that could be translated into a good story. There was so much great material to be gleaned by just paying attention to what is going on around him.
If someone were to ask him what superpower he would most like to possess, it would be the power to become invisible.He figured that this would be the coolist superpower of them all and yett even without this power he has managed to become next to invisible. He can't remember how he attained this ability or even when it became evident to him that no one really pays attention to him. He can walk into a crowded room and no one notices or acknowledges that he is there. At a party or any gathering where there are people standing or sitting in groups immersed in discussion or heated argument, no one ever asks for his opinion. Which is just as well for he never really has one.
As far back as he can remember he has been able to see instantly the many different sides or possibilities to any argument. Things have never been Black or White to him. He lives in a grey scale world and he is happy with his place in the Universe. He has never consciously tried to be invisible but he has endeavoured to never stand apart from the crowd but rather to blend into his surroundings. He is not the kind of guy who takes one for the team but then again no one would expect it of him. One of the real benefits to being invisible is that people have little or no expectations of you.
You might think that this would be an easy style of life to maintain but you would be wrong. While no one else has any expectations, that bloody little man constantly yammering inside his head does. It is constantly telling him to speak out, to take the lead, to give an opinion and for what! So it can satisfy it's never ending need to be stroked, to be held in high opinion, to stand out and be noticed. No...it's not an easy lifestyle to maintain. He has to constantly take deep breathes and bite his tongue because he has found as he gets older he suffers fools less and less. For the most part he is happy being what's his name...You know the guy who was standing next to you at the bar...
4 comments:
Gamol, you have brought a tear to my eye and I could just give you a hug. This is a powerful piece of writing - written from the heart - the only kind of writing. Thank you for sharing it with me.
Whoa, so much like a trip down one of my own brain’s back allies! I went through an invisible period but took another fork in the road when I considered the pros and cons...
I see you’re reading some good stuff. "The Power of Now" sent me off on yet another fork in the road, the best fork I ever took ;-)
There are times when I wish I could be invisible, and then I remember it's a very lonely place. This is a thinking piece. An excellent piece of writing. BJ
sometimes i feel invisible,, like i am a shadow of my former self... but i am seeking out interesting ways to use that new found quality,, and hoping that someday it becomes more than just a safe place to hide....
i really enjoyed this...
and i wanna know what happened to the post about "pretty boy" ??
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