We have several old men a block down the street from us who are quite the voyeurs – they love to watch. Every day, there are at least one or two that set their lawn chairs in a shady spot and just pass the day. . .watching. Several guys in trucks slow down and leisurely cruise by to get a better look. The parking garage attendant across the street from my office sits in his little booth and even uses his binoculars – and he doesn’t even care who sees him do it.Contrary to what you may think from this introduction, these are not dirty geezers whistling cat calls at all the pretty girls as they pass by on their way to their downtown offices. Not even close. These are all guys who are fascinated by trucks and cranes and concrete and big steel beams. . .and they are all enthralled by the large bank that is being erected on a city block near my workplace. There are two or three older gentlemen who really do camp out with their lawn chairs under the shade trees across the street, simply to watch the building’s progress as it is being built. They will often bring a small cooler with snacks and pop, and pass the day just watching the progress being made by the workman and large machines.
The parking garage attendant is often too absorbed with the progress down the street to even notice when the cars pass by his booth. I am sure the city is missing out on some revenue because he is often so engrossed, watching the construction with his binoculars, that he frequently fails to notice when people drive by the booth and leave without paying.
As I returned from lunch yesterday, I walked past the construction site and watched as a guy in a truck bumped his tires pretty hard into the curb as he was cruising by at the speed of a tortoise because he was so busy rubbernecking at the steel beams and concrete that he hadn’t kept his eyes on where he was going. Thank goodness the guys in the lawn chairs keep themselves a safe distance back on the sidewalk!
What is it about this type of project that causes some men so much fascination? I have yet to see any woman at all give this project much more than a passing glance. . . yet so many of the guys just can’t seem to get enough of it. I guess I would just have to chalk it up to yet one more difference among the genders.
