Comments on: He’s Going the Distance

By: maweesa

maweesa — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 00:17:05 +0000

my NY nemesis is fairway… i think it should be called hellway. i went in yesterday on my way home from work to buy a couple of treats and turned right around and walked up to westside market where i probably paid twice as much but left without wanting to murder the anyone who got in my way.

By: Troy

Troy — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 18:51:27 +0000

Davis, as a Professional Driver (I get PAID TO DRIVE to dental offices and sell stuff) I have perfect empathy for you. I call “rush hour”–”amateur hour” because that’s when all the amateurs who only drive twice a day come out of the woodwork and spoil it for us pros.

My nemesis is a front desk lady at this one office I regularly visit. She is the Gatekeeper of Gatekeepers.

In most offices I call on, I am a heavily anticipated visitor. A welcome, refreshing gush of humor, confidence, and optimism to lift their spirits from the doldrums of dentistry. I come in and I am greeted like Norm on Cheers. I wink to old ladies, and give a sideways glance and reminding tap on my wedding ring for the younger ones. The Dr recognizes my voice and peeks his head out of the operatory and gives me a hearty wave and holds up a latex finger to tell me he’ll be right with me (yep, I sold him those gloves). I give a confident nod (if he’s a younger Dr, the nod is upward) to acknowledge him in return. In the meantime, staff members crowd around me like children to a storyteller to see what gifts or news I bear that day.

But, the Nemesis. Something about a Nemesis is they have a profound and inexplicable power over you. They have unique access to your greatest weaknesses, and they exploit them to the fullest extent. When I enter the office of the Nemesis, whose name shall not be mentioned (not to protect her identity, but because it is too evil to utter), I am like a first-year girl scout selling thin mints in the red light district. The dimply smile is gone, the shoulders slumped, the eyes downward, the confidence instantly obliterated. I glance up and happen to catch eye contact with a young assistant — my hope springs — but then I realize she is running for cover in anticipation for the wrath about to be unleashed on me by the Front Desk Lady. “CAN I HELP YOU?” she barks, her eyes glowing like Medussa, knowing exactly who I am and what I’m there for…yet we play out this charade every other week like it’s the first time she’s laid eyes on my pitiful character. “Is…is Dr. Grey available?” What happens next is probably the same type of reaction the Gatekeeper of Hell would give someone who asked for permission to talk to Satan about the prospect of perhaps getting out of there. Upon leaving the office, I realize my Nemesis has yet again not only beaten me but demoralized me. I then go through several stages of emotion, each reaction markedly different from each other. The whole process takes about 15 minutes to run its course. My next call is 5 minutes away, so I usually spend a solid 10 minutes in the parking lot, rehabilitating my self respect.

Then it’s back to kissing babies and selling boatloads of dental stuff. But, no matter how many wins I get that day, no matter how many hoards of staff and Drs trustingly look to me for counsel, in the back of my mind, I’ll always know that I was beaten that day by my Nemesis.

By: Rachel

Rachel — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 16:48:44 +0000

To Christian:
“the vast majority of people over 6 ft weigh 400 pounds”

Welcome to America.

By: Mary

Mary — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 05:12:02 +0000

craig was not ok with that light at 66th. He would get so mad on the way to church (would we of course be running late) that he always wanted us ALL to just get out of the cab and walk the last half block to church. I would still be finishing by make-up, because we had gone 60mph for the last 15 blocks through green lights, so we couldn’t get out. I needed that light.

Parker still talks about his arch nemesis from NY, Anderson. He talks about him more than his old friends from NY.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 01:38:01 +0000

my personal nemesis is a relative to yours. nothing, and i mean NOTHING gets my blood boiling like waiting, whether it be in line at the grocery store, at a dr.’s office, or any other place where the time that I will be served is uncertain and in the hands of those sadistic little cashiers and receptionists. ex: a couple months ago I was at walgreen’s waiting for a prescription for my sick baby (who I stupidly brought with me). when i dropped the prescrip. off, I asked how long it would take. usually, i just go home and pick it up later but my little one was really sick and the pharmacist said it would only be 10-15 minutes. i diligently watched the minutes pass by, and then the seconds. right at about 20 minutes and still no prescrip., i approached the pharmacy window and asked how much longer it would be. they acted like they didn’t know who i was! they said it would be about 5-10 more minutes. lest all my previous waiting be in vain, i again sat and waited. i was seething as it approached the 10 minute mark and STILL no medicine. i got up from my chair in a huff, gathered my other purchases with my baby and went to the front cashier to check out. you better believe she got an earful from me. right as i was walking out the front door, lo and behold, “rebecca bell, your prescription is ready in the pharmacy.” i charged back there and the other customers, noticing my red face and angry stomping, let me cut in front of them in line to get my medicine. i proceeded to let loose on the pharmacist as well. do you think i go back to that walgreens? you bet. but not without my head hanging low, in hopes that no one recognizes the crazy lady at the pharmacy.

By: Christian

Christian — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 01:23:09 +0000

poorly timed lights are seriously the worst.

My personal nemesis is finding jeans that fit a no-bum, long-legged guy. Some important person in the clothing industry long ago must have promulgated the idea that the vast majority of people over 6 ft weigh 400 pounds.

By: Wade

Wade — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 23:22:11 +0000

Davis, this reminds me of my daily adventures with the eastbound 6th south traffic. The stoplights are timed perfectly for anyone in the flow, but I have to enter the flow from the north (a left turn), which means when my light turns green allowing me to turn left into the flow, I’m already behind the 8-ball because the 6th south light at my intersection has just turned red, and I’ve got like 8 seconds to catch it at the next intersection before it turns red as well and its all over. I’m pretty sure half of my commuting fuel consumption is spent on that beating that one light. Especially if someone is ahead of me in the left turn lane, I’ve gotta cut the corner and turn before they do (they usually don’t understand the time crunch we are under). Anyway, not really my nemesis, but my daily challenge. My nemesis is probably Nemesis.

By: Ben Pratt

Ben Pratt — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 20:13:56 +0000

Whatever DDDT.com is paying you, Davis, it’s not enough.

By: Braden

Braden — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:54:49 +0000

Layne, it’s only fun to live in NYC if Dave is there with you all the time. Do not move there. It is not worth it.

Dave, your ability to find the hero’s quest in everyday life, and to write it up in a way that fully conveys the drama of it all is one of your most amazing qualities.

By: craig

craig — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:17:45 +0000

my personal nemesis was the light at 100th and columbus. it was out of sync with the rest of the lights and you had to stop and wait for the next cycle without fail. this was particularly frustrating because there was no logical reason for it being out of sync. i was ok with stopping at 66th because it is the last street on CPW before it becomes one way