Why I'm doing this
About a year and a half ago, way before I started this column, I began writing what eventually turned out to be a memoir of my experiences as a doorman, some of which I've published online.
One would probably expect a memoir to be written by someone who is long retired from his or her job, but I continue to be employed as a doorman.
For this reason I’ve had to maintain anonymity, both out of respect for the building that I work in as well as uncertainty about my job in regards to the writing.
Last summer, for instance, another anonymous doorman used “Twitter” as his means of informing people about his everyday activities at the door. Twitter guy suddenly disappeared. If you are out there, please give us a shout and let us know you’re alive.
I am thankful that I have been given a platform to continue writing about my experiences and what it ultimately means to me being a doorman. I also feel that I can share in certain things that residents may truly want to know.
Sure I could write about the fabulous people that reside in buildings or the even greater people that work in them. And from time to time I will most definitely give them their due props.
But for the most part I tend to think that I can best serve as lending a voice to the thousands of workers in all buildings around the city by getting down into the very core and fabric of what makes a happy and healthy relationship between resident and worker—and why a particular doorman goes from being friendly one day to a stick in the mud the next.
Little tidbits like this and a slew of others are what I am trying to bring to the table for all apartment dwellers as a kind of survival guide to living in the big city. I write about things because I have personally dealt with many issues but by also having done research and asking questions of other workers associated in the same circle. It is safe to say that I do know what I’m talking about it.
I have seen too often the pettiest of situations escalate into some full-blown feud between workers and residents all because a lack of communication. So here I am. If I can serve as some kind of minor mediator of sorts then so be it. I will always try to be fair and unbiased in my posts showing the good and bad of a topic.
As far as how the words come out, that’s another story entirely.
I often write with a bit of sarcasm and wry humor thrown in. This may or may not appeal to certain individuals, and it’s quite all right.
I have embraced my position of doorman for more than fifteen years with the an upbeat nature. While there are great moments to talk about, there are also those moments that do bring about a little tension or a scratch of the head and a sort of “huh?” feeling.
So to anyone and everyone who reads, please don’t take everything so literally. If one cannot distinguish between reading something on a serious level and something that is intended to strike a nerve in a light manner, it may say a lot more about the person reading it than the one who is writing it.
I will certainly not hold my tongue on whatever issues I’m addressing. Why should anything be sugar coated? I do hope at least that no matter how or what I write, building workers aren’t treated or looked at in a different manner, or at least in a bad way. I hope that what I write might in some way be used as a basis for resolution.
Please feel free to ask questions or post comments and I will always try my best to answer and explain the how’s and why’s of doorman behavior. Until then....this door is closed.
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