A little whisper in the dark

Little known fact about Leong: He used to be a grease monkey at a bike shop.

In between my army days and the starting of my polytechnic life, I worked for a bit as a bike mechanic. Yes, the kind that gets his hands all black, regularly gets cut by sharp objects, hauls things around like a labourer, and still have to be knowlegeable about bike stuff and be able to hold a decent conversation with the substantial portion of customers who are expats.

But I liked to get my hands on bikes. It didn't have to be thousand dollar items, even on $200 bikes, I derive satisfaction from tuning it up (they come from the factory partially disasembled) to the best of its capabilities. I like to feel the bike work, how each mechanical moving component responds to your control. The tactile sensation of the cable running in its housing, the feel of the brake pads grabbing the rims. The precise gear changes that careful set up and tuning brings.

Having worked in the line for less than a year, my grease monkey days aren't something I dare to bring up. There's other guys out there way more experienced than me. Having been humbled much more often than once with regard to my ability (not just in wrenching) taught me to keep my mouth shut. Taught me never to assume I was the best in a given environment. The proverbial big fish in the little pond, but you never know if there's a bigger fish hiding in the shadows. To just let your ability speak for you instead of your mouth.

Contemporary Quote for the day: Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes.

posted by Chung Leong @ 3:42 AM