A city easy to love, hard to like
For the past 4 years, I’ve walked to work. The route itself has become monotonous, but the journey never bores me because, as an intrinsically introverted only child, observation is my amusement.
The walk to work wakes me up today, like every day. Between fires and feces, my nostrils have been accosted by scents they’ll never recover from: I’m breathing in a nearby coffee shop’s freshly-baked pastries one moment then freshly deposited human waste the next, a sensory experience comparable to chugging a water bottle only to discover it’s actually vodka. Gets the blood pumpin’ every time.
As I round a side street, I notice inconsistencies in the way San Franciscans live and the way they dress: gritty bohemian street style hinders my ability to discern those who go camping for fun from those who lack an alternative. Yet the brokers and the broken continue to walk down these rundown streets full of rundown people, just like any day.
Women bearing zodiac tattoos exit a boxing studio in a sweaty cluster of pheromones and fury, excitedly chattering about the upcoming election. They prefer to put their trust in the affirmations of astrologists rather than the promises of politicians — even if both are phonies, at least astrologists don’t historically have a reputation for being misogynists.
As I approach downtown, foot traffic is disrupted by all types of folks trying to make a buck. The homeless hecklers always seem to end the day with deeper pockets than the Greenpeace peddlers, they’re more fun to talk to and far less aggressive. Avoiding eye contact with clipboard-wielding whale-savers is a skill that every San Franciscan has but doesn’t want to need. Either way, discomfort is unavoidable in San Francisco. It’s nearly impossible to go for a coffee break without being reminded of the fragility of the human condition. Everyone is just trying their best.
Nothing about San Francisco can be explained. My walks remind me that the city’s beauty lies in the inconsistencies: a city colored by chaos, rich it its complexity and defined by its indefinability.
