by Howard Williams
Mercury Rising, 19-9 Issue, October 1995
A few years ago a mayoral proclamation decreed that October 9 of each year would be Messenger Appreciation Day in San Francisco. October 9 is of course 10-9 in our manifests and as we all know "10-9" in radio code means "Repeat you last transmission" or another way of saying "Huh?"
For the past few years 10-9 Day has come and gone with little attention paid by anyone - messenger or non-messenger. But this year, with the CMWC approaching, 10-9 Day and SF bike messengers have some attention.
Some messengers object to October 9 being Messenger Appreciation Day. They point out that choosing a day that symbolizes unawareness, however tongue-in-cheek, will reinforce the lack of seriousness which many non-messengers have toward us. And it is unfortunate that much of our best music, writing, art and even charitable activities are not taken seriously.
On the other hand there are indications that this 10-9 Day will see some serious attention and appreciation shown by non-messengers. Accordingly, I think that this October 9 should utilize this attention and appreciation to point out the seriousness of our work, our culture and our lives. One topic we might discuss is should we get a new date for Messenger Appreciation Day, 10-9?
So this year, we thought we'd use this new-found-non-messenger appreciation (thanks, Odwalla) to kick-off the 4th annual Cycle Messenger World Championships to be held in SF Labor Day Weekend 1996.
Make sure to get one of Odwalla's free juices!
click here for a list of messenger zines
If you have comments or suggestions, email me at messvilleto@yahoo.com