‘I Had Gotten a Fantastic Deal on a Floor-Model Cruiser Bike’

Perfect Pink Bike

Dear Diary:

It was some years ago, and I had gotten a fantastic deal on a floor-model cruiser bike at the Kmart on Astor Place.

The bike was a deep pink and had a pretty basket. It was a perfect petite size for my 5-foot-1 frame.

I managed to get it down the stairs to the 6 train platform, and then into a crowded train car.

The problem came after I had gotten off and was confronted with having to lug it up what felt like an insurmountable staircase to the street and, eventually, my apartment.

As I paused at the foot of the stairs, looked up and considered the challenge ahead of me, a man with a kind smile and what appeared to be the strength of a professional wrestler offered to carry the bike for me.

“You’re not going to run off with it, right?” I asked.

He looked at me and shrugged his broad shoulders.

“Lady,” he said, lifting the bike and starting up the stairs, “I wouldn’t be caught dead riding this thing.”

— Anne Roderique-Jones