December 23, 2015 Article

The Old Coot rats out a friend. (Again!)

BY Merlin Lessler

My friend Daren had a surprise encounter with a car fender the other day. While on his bicycle. He said to me, and I quote, “I don’t want to read about this in the paper! You’ve exposed me enough!” But, he didn’t say please! I seriously considered his request. After all, I had written about the time he strutted across the floor in a New York City nightclub, back in his salad days, with a long strand of toilet paper trailing from the heel on his shoe. And, I’d also revealed his middle of the night encounter with a bat in his bedroom. That was because I was impressed that a 6 foot five, physically fit, male, could conquer a two-ounce bat with the single swing of a tennis racquet and dispose of the victim by tossing it into the yard from his front porch clad in nothing but a faded pair of boxer shorts. 

So, I suppose his request that I keep my big mouth shut was well founded. But, a Facebook post beat me to the punch, absolving me from any guilt for not honoring it. The post said, in part, Well this morning my husband was hit by a car while riding his bike home from coffee. He is fine. A bit bruised up; but he is in excellent physical shape & that saved him from further harm. He was crossing at a red light and the person hit him IN THE CROSS WALK...the car’s windows were not clear of the mornings frost...PLEASE remember to clear your windows off so you can SEE!!!!!! Yes it's cold but all it takes is an extra few minutes. Grateful he's ok & it was not one of our elder friends who love to walk our village streets. ELDER FRIENDS? ME? 

Let the record show, I was not the first to let the cat out of the bag. And besides, I couldn’t be prouder of him; he violated all the normal bicycle safety rules and rode like an old coot (which he is not and won’t be for many years). No helmet graced his head as he peddled his vintage village bicycle on the sidewalk, facing traffic. But, he did make a mistake; he crossed the street at the corner. A true old coot knows that a corner is the most dangerous place to cross. Drivers turn right on red without stopping. And without watching for bikers and pedestrians. He crossed with the light in his favor; then it happened. A driver went right on red without looking and knocked him off his bike. His so called fitness and fast reflexes saved the day. Being one of his ELDER friends, I probably would have ended up lying in the road, upside down, dialing that lawyer in Syracuse who promises, “To leave no stone unturned! ” 

So for me, and the rest of the “morning coffee boys” at Carol’s Coffee & Art Bar, we are thankful he came through with only a scraped elbow. And, even more thankful for being able to witness another chapter unfold in the Daren Merrill life story. It’s been a great movie so far.