balloons, stolen bikes, and broken fingers...oh my...

so, as some of you might have read...we had a client call and request to meet a messenger at thompson center to deliver some 30 balloons upstairs to lisa madigans office. we ended up taking the job because...well, not sure. anyway, the job actually payed alot of money...we charged a van solo which is pretty much as expensive is it got. so, who do i choose to take care of the sillyness...triple-six-five. she hasn't been to work in a while and could use the loot. she shows up and tries to deliver the balloons...apparently the client, which really isn't a client but instead used his/her credit card, was a protestor of sorts. he/she sent the balloons as a jab at lisa madigans office for some police brutality case. needless to say...they were not happy and sent 6665 back down holding the balloons...

6665...hey julio?

j.dot...what up? you got the balloons off?

6665...no man. its part of some protest or something and they wouldn't take them...what should i do?

j.dot...i dont know. is the person still there?

6665...nope. im gonna let them go...what should i do?

j.dot...well, i need you to get to your marsh sweep so let them fly...

seriously, what do i tell her? i wish i would've been there to photograph the whole thing or, at least witness the event. either way, six-five was happy to make money, the client was able to protest, and i had the chance to laugh out loud during these winter daze.

on another note, 6629 got his bike stolen. he didn't quite tell me so i couldn't get the word out in time to get eyes on the street. either way, i call him...

j.dot...two-nine, two-nine.

6629...hey julio, im walking my last drop cause my bike just got stolen.

j.dot...what? when? serious?

6629...yeah. its no big deal. im walking this last one. its actually kind of funny...they took my bike and left me theirs.

j.dot...what?

6629...yeah, they left me theirs but its a pretty busted bike. im gonna have to head home after this. it isn't a big deal...i got another one at home.

again, what do i say? at least he was in good spirits but not much gets this man down. he's been around for a while and knows how things work...unfortunately.

one more thing...6688, the biker that got doored and broke his fingers but decided to not go to the hospital. apparently he decided to tape them up but they settled completely off so he had to go to the doctor where they re-broke the fingers so that they would settle correctly. fuck...these winter days are getting weird and funny...peace.

oh...chicago...

so, as i stated before this week i have been covering for the night dispatcher. not a huge deal but i miss out on all the fun throughout the day. i looked out the window before heading off to the new shift and chicago is under a winter storm of sorts. winds are about 30 mph, there's snow everywhere, and the temp went from mid/high 40's to single digits in less than 24 hrs. i dont envy the other bike dispatcher because i know what this means...no shows, call-ins, and everyone slows up.

i looked up the ten day forecast and it seems as if the temps are gonna range from the teens to the thirties...this does not include the wind-chill factor. the forecast also shows snowy and wet days. cold and wet do not go together at all. packages will definitely be late this week and next.

now...what to do? bikers are gonna have to keep their head, hands, and feet dry and warm. they're gonna have to look for spots to stay warm...messenger centers, thompson center(100 w. randolph), 7 eleven's, libraries, dunkin donuts, and my all time favorite...the front seat of gina's truck.


pic by mareesha...

gina(the pizza lady on madison just east of wacker), the messenger mom, will always take care of you. she carries a bunch of random things in her truck to help out messengers...extra jackets, pants, and so on. the best part is that you can stop by and buy a cheap slice of pizza and she'll let you enjoy it in the front seat with the heat at full blast.

i wish i was around to help deal with the stress that these next few days will bring. hope everyone stays warm and stays safe...peace.

misery loves company...

all day today was miserable. work was steady but the weather conditions were horrible enough to make the day very long. from the minute i woke up to the moment i left it was still raining. the rain itself is annoying but you throw in slush, cold weather, chicago wind and the day turns into a complete disaster. not too many orders got done on time today but i did not bother to try and make my guys hustle out a bit more...they had enough to deal with.

6682 quit...6653 and 6688 called in sick, sounded legit...6674 disappeared. 6674 said he lost his i.d. and his state i.d. so he could not access buildings anymore. he asked me to get a new work i.d. printed and he would show up and keep working...no problem. got the i.d. and waited...waited some more...then kept waiting. i tried calling him but his phone was off...he said he was frustrated and pissed off at the day so i am assuming that he decided to just call it a day. i couldn't afford to lose him but there wasn't much i could do.

1168 called me just to say hello. he was working with the other bike dispatcher today. that was super nice especially in a day when everyone is pissed off.


i gotta say...not sure if its nice of me to say that messengers/dispatchers are miserable but with all the complaining we do, today was appropriate. misery definitely loves company...peace.