The randomest ever

[susandennis]

In the past few weeks I have found myself paying attention to the way people walk. Their gate, their strides. It's amazing how different they all are. But, while I can easily spot differences - this guy walks way differently than that guy - I'm at a loss to spot why. Are his hips being used differently? His knees? Is his posture different. It's kind of driving me a little crazy.

I have the same issue with accents. I can tell if you are from South Jersey or Minnesota. I can tell the difference between Alabama and North Carolina and can nail a Pittsburghian with about 2 syllables BUT I have no clue why. Ditto with Indian, French, New Zealand, Australian... I'm sure it's vowels but are they long/short/hard/soft? What am I hearing and how do I know? I have no idea.

I got the donuts... General Porpoise. Here's the thing. In a vacuum, they are heaven. Perfect. Wonderful. But $4.65 for a donut???? I'm not sure I'm down with that.

On the other hand, I saved $1,250 today. So maybe $4.65 per isn't so bad. The homeowners association has started cracking down on hot water heater replacement. You must replace yours every 10 years. MUST. I totally get and appreciate their doing this. And they are sourcing and managing bulk installs to both keep the cost down and the hassle. All you have to do is say yes and fork over $1,250. The building management will take care of everything else - installation, removal, etc and you don't even have to be home. It's a sweet deal.

BUT they want to do this in January. And in January, I will be paying them nearly $7,000 for a special assessment (roof and tuckpointing). My water heater is top of the line. And, I rarely even use it. I shower at the gym every day, I don't use the dishwasher, I wash my clothes in cold water.

So I replied to the email asking for an extension and got a reply that they would ping me again next year. WHEW! And nice. The 'new' building manager (ok so he's now been here two years but still...new-ish kinda) has annoyed me in a million ways but lately not so much.

Ok, time to get back to the sewing machine.

Comments

[gracegiver]

My husband's gate was the very first thing I was attracted to when I first saw him (walking in with a lady hand-in-hand) I called it "sauntering." I still love that about him.

[susandennis]

Nice!

[gracegiver]

I do notice people's gate, but like you - can't really pin it down exactly what it is.
Probably a lack of vocabulary, for me.

[daphnep.livejournal.com]

I sometimes think of those guys at amusement parks and fairs, who follow people, imitating their gait, for the amusement of onlookers. (And tips?)

They have a skill of honing right in on that difference in people, and caricaturing it in their own movements. Sometimes I see someone walk and I want to "try it on" for myself.

[susandennis]

That's exactly it! I look to see if I can noodle out how/what they are doing that makes it the way it is and I never can.

But I did just focus on the fact that gate is really gait. Better late than...

[ani-mama.livejournal.com]

It is fascinating how people move. Part of giving life to an animated character is to give them different body postures, gait, or other quirks of movement. I watch people all the time, so I can replicate some interesting quirk for a future character. I am also terrible with faces, so knowing a person's body mannerisms help me identify people I really should be able to recognize, like my kid's friends or husband's coworkers.

$4.65 a donut? Wowsers, and I though the $2.50 per donut at the place down in Spokane was expensive. I hope they were amazing.

[rsc.livejournal.com]

Tangentially to your observations of people's gaits, one evening last year when jwg and I were eating at an outdoor café on a busy promenade in Sydney, we happened to notice that, almost without exception, pairs of people who were walking together were walking in step with each other. (There was somewhat less regularity in groups of more than two.) I've noticed this on a couple of occasions since then, too. I suppose people unconsciously adjust their gaits to synchronize. (I should actually see if this happens for us; I've never actually paid attention. Of course, if I were paying attention, it would influence the outcome, so it's a difficult experiment to perform.)

[susandennis]

ooooh interesting!! now i'm going to be on the lookout for that!

[shutterbug.livejournal.com]

Gait watching has become my life ;)