18 Oct A Nagging Zig Zagging

Posted at 15:08h in News Outta My Control by

I feel a little foolish. I find myself unable to stand still or walk in a straight line these days. With the sniper still at large, I am zig zagging in suburbia. I don’t seem to feel this compulsion when I am working downtown.

Jason Kottke reports seeing this walking phenomena in it’s “natural” state on a wind-swept, rough crossing on the Nantucket ferry. There is nothing natural about the way I am walking.

I have become ultra aware of my surroundings. My head quickly scans right and left as I walk down the street: not the smooth head rotation of an owl, but more like the independent staccato eye movements of a chameleon. I attempt to observe in all directions simultaneously while trying to blend into the background.

Conventional wisdom about urban safety is being turned inside out. Some suggest walking in unlit, dark streets rather than in bright light to avoid detection. I want to move in odd eccentric paths, bobbing my head left to right and up and down, but I have a hard time maintaining the stance. To do so means accepting my heightened, albeit justifiable paranoia. And I feel foolish. And angry.

Jeff
jeffgates@outlook.com
1 Comment
  • Donna
    Posted at 19:56h, 18 October

    I heard someone on the radio talking about this and I thought – how strange. The image of all these people zig-zagging doing their daily routine is of course quite absurd. And yet what else can you do, really.
    We can think well, your odds of getting in a car accident are far greater. But tell that to the family of the woman at Home Depot. Or the man at the gas station.
    I hope this ends soon.