I'm treated reasonably well. But it's more 'benign neglect' than approval. If anyone is wondering if more of us should be bicycle commuting, then they're not making it obvious to me. And no one really joins me valuntarily. Though there have been a few folks over the years who were pretty decent fair-weather bike commuters. Not for years on end like me. But they rode a bit. I can think of two of them off-hand. One's not around anymore. I'm not sure of the other. But I haven't see him or his bike in a while.

I have pretty good facilities available to me for storing my bike and for hanging up my sweaty clothes to dry out. But it's because of my job. Some people in some jobs might have access to similar spots. But most employees would not have much in the way of facilities.

There are a handful of employees who do have access to these 'secure' areas. But only as a pass-through. Unlike me they have no reason to actually do anything there. Occasionally I'll get wind of the fact that one of them is complaining about my stuff. The bigwigs they complain to, to their credit, have so far ignored these complaints and have left me alone. I've been around long enough now that I feel pretty sure that they'll never give me trouble over this. (Unless some new guy with a chip on his shoulder shows up, I suppose.)

I only bring my bike inside in the very worst weather. That's because I just know that one of the busybodies will complain that this would be a 'bottle-neck" in an emergency. I do have at my disposal an area that is surrounded by four walls and is behind locked doors. But it's open to the sky. I have a key. So do just a few other people. And one of the busybodies once complained about my bike being a bottle-neck there. Nothing ever came of that. Upper management sided with me.

Such small-minded complaints. We're talking about segregated areas here. Even in an emergency there won't be any foot traffic there. Even if there were a fire right where my bike was parked, the bike would be only one of many obstructions for the fire fighters. They'd just kick everything out of their way. It wouldn't even occur to them to wonder why a bicycle is sitting there. But then jerks can always find a reason to be a jerk, can't they?

Most of my fellow employees are mildly admiring once they realize that I'm doing it voluntarily and actually could drive a car to work if I chose to. But that wears off. Every now and then I'll detect a whiff of snideness or mocking attitude on the part of someone new. But that goes away when they perceive that most of the people around think pretty highly of me.

Many who've known me for a long time will say something like, "I hope you didn't ride that bike today" when the weather's really bad. But they have a feeling that I did. They have a good natured laugh when I confirm.

One guy who knew me quite well (we worked together) turned around and saw me coming in on a very cold and snowy day. In my winter get-up I look about like a skier or a snowboarder. A big grin appeared on his face. He might have been close to laughing. He said, "Did you have a nice flight?"

Another guy, virtually identical situation, said, "What'd you do? Parachute in?"

But that sort of stuff is in fun, of course. I'm fine with that.

Fellow employees and management are not hostile. But management doesn't seem inclined to provide any support. And, other than a very few who've made some attempt, no one considers doing the same thing.

Even though it would benefit them so much. It's hard to figure.