Pedicab Confessional: A Word of Advice

The following pedicab confessional story comes to us from Rachel Krause, the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition’s Communications Manager.

I once spent a summer working as a pedicab driver for Shakespeare’s Pizza in Columbia, Missouri, while on break from school at the University of Missouri.

One of my favorite parts of the job was getting to meet all different kinds of people (not to mention I got in the best biking shape of my life.) One afternoon, I gave a ride to an old man with a worn leather suitcase he placed on his lap.

He asked to go to the bank. As we approached his destination he spoke up, “Hey, can I give you a word of advice?” I hesitated, “Uh, sure.”

“The world is full of jerks. Don’t let anyone take up residence in your brain unless they’re paying their rent to you. They’re just not worth it.”

I was a bit taken aback by his words of advice, but I  thanked him and let him off by the bank steps. To this day, I continue to think back to those words and smile.

“Yes mystery man, I guess there are a lot of jerks out there.”