Slow walkers

In a similar vein to yesterday’s post, on today’s commute I was musing on the personality traits of slow walkers. One might, upon initial consideration of this subsection of the population, assume they are more relaxed and happy-go-lucky individuals than the average population; those who feel no need to rush through life and instead take things at their own pace. Fast walkers, by contrast, could be perceived as more uptight, stressed out and highly strung, always rushing from place to place and chasing their tails to try and get things done in time. As someone with both feet firmly in the fast walking camp I can’t say I entirely disagree with the latter assertion. But a further theory I’d like to throw into the mix is that some (not all, as I grant you it’s unfair to label a whole group in the same way) slow walkers are actually a) inherently lazy, b) lacking in direction and purpose in their lives and c) wasting valuable hours just getting from A to B. Don’t get me wrong, walking can be a pleasurable pursuit in its own right when done on holiday in the Lake District (or similar), but what possesses people to walk at funeral procession speed when they are walking to the tube station after work will never, I’m afraid, make sense to me. And that, dear readers, is all I have to say on the matter.

3 thoughts on “Slow walkers

  1. I amble as I have no need to rush; I know where I need to be and how long it will take to get there.

    To race for a place in a confined space filled with stale air, body odour and misery, when one can stroll in a bustling town or city enjoying the fresh air, the sounds, the colours, the changing nature of space seems equally strange to me.

    • And this, of course, is absolutely fair enough. My post was really tongue in cheek – I love to amble when I’m in beautiful surroundings too, just not in the concrete jungle that is south London when I’m rushing to work in the smog 😉

  2. ah but where better to amble, than a space built by our own hands?! nature is fine, but once you’ve seen one tree, one sunset, one landscape they’re all pretty similar… whereas buildings…oh the beauty…so many variations. colour, scale, movement, craftsmanship, texture, the change from day to night, fenestration, privacy, surprise…a city is something to be explored and appreciated at all times. pissing about aside…leave early one day, walk slowly and look up [the former greatly assists the latter] that is where some of the beautiful secrets lie.

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