Dangerous breakdancers

[redbird]

There are some groups of young men (I don't know how many) who like to come onto subway trains, announce loudly "it's showtime," turn on music, and do a break-dancing routine, then ask for donations. I don't much care for them: they play the music loud enough to be heard easily over the subway noise, which is loud enough to be uncomfortable. But I've gotten used to trying to ignore them and keep reading my book or doing my puzzle.

Coming home from the gym this evening, I was trying to do that when one of them misjudged his movement and kicked my left knee. My reaction was to yell "Watch it, asshole!"

I'm not sure what I expected from there, but it wasn't a demand that I not call him that or he would spit in my face. Only after that did he say something about "accident." I knew it was an accident: that's not the point, or not most of the point. It didn't help any that one of the other guys there kept saying "It's okay" to me, rather than ever asking me whether I was okay. (To him, I said "tell your friend, he's the one who's threatening me.")

I can't tell from how he handled this whether he just doesn't care about strangers (and hasn't figured out that harming the audience isn't good busking technique) or whether his reaction came from "this is normal, I kick subway riders all the time." Near the end of the routine, he bounced off one wall of the subway car, hand above another woman's head in a way that he clearly did control, so it's not just incompetence. If it was incompetence, I would hope his friends would make him practice, or leave him home. (Mediocre musicians on the subway are merely annoying; breakdancing in a crowded space requires a higher level of skill.)

I iced my knee when I got home, but it's half an hour or so from Columbus Circle to my couch, so I suspect it wasn't in time to prevent a bruise.


Cardio, 10 minutes, top heart rate 132
Rolled out IT band etc.
Hamstring bridge, 4 sets of 9
Ab work on large ball, 3 sets of 10
Squats with ball, 3 sets of 15
Calf raises with ball, 2 sets of 15
Psoas exercise, 4 sets of {one with each leg}
The nerve stretch Emilie showed me, lying on the foam roller on the floor

Some standing on the foam roller
Lat pulldown on balance platform, 35 pounds, 3 sets of 12
(The one I have my arms straight for, and pull down, on platform, 20 pounds, 12)
Triceps exercise, on platform, 22.5 pounds, 2 sets of 12

Hip adduction, 90 pounds, 13, 12
Hip abduction, 75 pounds, 12, 9
Chest press, 50 pounds, 10, 6
Stretches

Comments

[aedifica]

Oh my! I've only ever seen a subway breakdancer once, and that was on the Red Line going through Cambridge. I quite enjoyed it--but the music wasn't loud enough to bother me and nobody ever appeared to be in danger. I confess I never thought about the possible failure modes!

[rivka.livejournal.com]

That's awful. I'm so sorry.

[kalimac.livejournal.com]

a demand that I not call him that or he would spit in my face.

Good lord. Tempted to say to him:

1) "I'll make you a deal. Don't kick me and I won't call you that."

2) "You'll spit at me? You really are an asshole."

#1 is surely more politic than #2, but perhaps not enough.

[amaebi.livejournal.com]

I think there's a big widespread human identity thing in which people cannot stand to Be One Who Has Erred. It's very unfortunate.

(And of course most people don't like being called an asshole.)

I hope your knee is soon better. How we humans do collide into each other, despite the popularity of libertarianism....

[amaebi.livejournal.com]

And then later it occurred to me that my impression is that people in those sorts of trades tend to think of themselves as real and everyone around them as marks. :(

Feeling any better?

[browngirl.livejournal.com]

Charming. I'm sorry that little shit had to fall into your day.