Capitol Hill Community Council members Reiny Cohen and Zachary DeWolf working with Dylan Cate of Rep. Brady Walkinshaw’s #WorkingTogether project to collect community priorities at the Punk Rock Flea Market.
Attending events across Seattle, particularly organizational fundraisers or campaign events, I connect with a variety of interesting people. Often, local electeds and community leaders attend and I always notice one particular behavior during these interactions.
People either shake my hand with the limp enthusiasm one receives when meeting someone who would rather be elsewhere or the confident, respectful hand-embrace given when greeting someone with whom you are familiar. I describe this as the battle between the fish or the firm.
When I was a kid, my father often let me go with him when visiting his friends around the reservation. Even at six, he would pester me about shaking his friends’ hands with strength and confidence. “It must be firm to show respect, not only for the other person but for yourself, as well,” he’d say. Whereas, a dead fish handshake illustrates that one is uninterested, nervous, and lacks confidence, which often leaves the receiver feeling disrespected.
So after reading a recent post on Seattlish titled Ballard NIMBYs are Not Happy that O’Brien, Murray Actually Care About the Homeless Freezing to Death, I thought about how our service through the Capitol Hill Community Council sometimes feels like an active choice between “the fish” or “the firm.”
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