Strange Days: Gym Scare

I had another incident at the gym today. 

I say “another” because I’ve had two similar incidents in the past few months. My gym has some strange people in it. Not strange like, they prefer cold brew over hot coffee but strange like aggressive. One guy in particular is amped up every time I see him. He’s on drugs, that’s clear. His behavior is erratic and agitated, I’d say meth. He doesn’t even work out, he just walks around and hops over things. He gives random people high fives and pretends to be using a cane like a blind man. Every movement is quick and deliberate. I’ve seen him stomping around like he’s trying to put holes in the floor with his steps.

This sounds like just a bunch of silliness but it’s unsettling. He looks like a guy who might attack on you at random too. Tattoos cover his body. I’d put him at 6 feet 3 inches at least. Likely he has issues that extend beyond drugs. I had him pegged for a homeless man when I first saw him. I complained to the staff about his unsettling behavior. They mostly just wanted to know if there was anything he had done. Basically, Do you have a reason that we can call the cops and get him out of here? Technically he hadn’t done anything wrong aside from put me, and others, in a defensive posture.

Is he dangerous? I don’t know but he sure looks it. Anyway, what happened to a store saying “You’re acting like a nut. Get out of here!” Apparently, they’ve “warned” him. That’s what one of the trainers told me today. After my second complaint about the guys’ uncontrollable and weird behavior, the trainer made it clear their hands were tied. Well, their hands were tied unless he made threats or committed some violence. That’s how I heard it at least.

I’m not disparaging the staff. They’re asked to manage a fitness center where anyone with $12 a month can pop in for any reason. The price point allows a pretty diverse group, including meth heads.

 I politely ran a guy off a few months ago. He was also acting strange, but in a mellow low energy way. He had a frozen, dull expression on his face and keep walking in a tight circular pattern. I'm fairly sure he was mumbling to himself. He wasn’t dressed like a gym guy. He looked like he just rolled out of his cardboard box after sleeping one off. Clearly this guy wandered in. After watching him for 5 minutes or so I decided to go talk to him.

I approached him with a smile and something like “Hey, buddy you need some help?” My dialogue was the finger snap that broke whatever spell he was under. He gave me something about looking around or thinking of joining. As loopy as he acted, my questions didn’t confuse him. Alert enough to follow my question, he looked out of place and it was obvious the staff hadn’t noticed his presence. I went up to the counter and asked them if the guy had a pass. They were completely unaware of him. A few of us kept an eye on him until he left, which was just a few minutes later.

That was the first time I felt unsafe. Not just unsafe, but I felt that no one was watching out or even thinking about dangerous scenarios. This isn’t just a gym thing either. A lot of businesses don’t have a plan in place for handling, let’s call it 'suspect' behavior. One question I asked the trainer was about protocol. What is your plan? Not that they have to tell me, but companies need something other than a promise to call the cops. At least have a taser behind the counter and some zip ties.

I can see a big market for security personnel in the next 20 years, in all sorts of businesses that never needed it before. 

 The grocery store I go to has a police officer standing guard a regular intervals. It’s a Walmart so I don’t know if the city covers it or if the cops are earning extra money on the side. That’s a new development that only goes back a few years. I don’t think it’s just theft either. Stores have their own way of handling shoplifting. You don’t need cops for that. There have been a few shootings in the parking lot in recent years. I imagine we’ll see more security jobs opening up for businesses that need protection from dangerous ‘customers’.  

I ended my morning by grabbing my bag from the locker and coming back home. I hadn’t put in any work. That guy had unsettled me so much that I just left. On the way out of the locker room I nearly bumped into him. He was pretending to walk like a blind man and nearly stumbled into me. I stopped him and said “Hey man, are you Ok? You’re acting king of weird.” He quickly replied “You don’t get to tell me that. I don’t know you from Adam.”

After that he headed for the showers and I left. On the way out the trainer stopped me and said they’d had a second complaint. I guess that means he’s out? I’m not really sure. I’ll head in tomorrow and try again.