How many people can say they stopped Batman?

The other day I was driving down the street while at work when I saw a guy stopped on the side of the rode on his bicycle. He had one foot on the curb and he was looking down at something.

What really caught my eye was the word BATMAN on the back of his tank top. As I passed him, I thought it would be a funny picture to make it look like the police stopped Batman.

I dismissed the thought and kept driving. But this BAT opportunity would never come up again, so I turned around and headed back. I figured, how hard could it be to ask the guy.

By this time, Batman was riding his bicycle again along the curb. He didn’t have a cape, nor was Robin, The Boy Wonder, there as his partner. It was just a guy in his late 40’s with a shaved head, goatee, mustache and tattoos. He was the poster boy for parolee/tweaker man.

I pulled alongside and yelled out through my passenger window, “Can I take a picture of your shirt?” How funny that must have sounded.

He never even looked at me. It almost seemed like he pedaled faster. I called out to him again, but he looked straight ahead and seemed more determined to ignore me. I then wondered if this guy was going to be a “consensual encounter” that turned into a bicycle pursuit.

I called out one more time and he snapped out of his trance. He looked over at me and saw the police car. He said, “Yeah,” and stopped.

I stopped behind him and got out of the car as I said, “Can I take a picture of your shirt with the police car? It’s not every day a person can say they stopped Batman. My kids will think it’s funny.”

Parolee man laughed as he said, “Sure, you want me to stand like this?” He then turned away from the car while still sitting on the bicycle.

“Yes, perfect. Hold on.”

I set up my shot, but I noticed I couldn’t see the entire Batman word because of the way he slouched.

“Can you stand up straight for me?” Batman instantly stood up straight as he “posed” for the picture.

After I was done, I walked up to Batman and showed him the picture as I said, “Thank You, I appreciate it.”

“Bye, I hope your kids like the picture.” Batman then started pedaling as he rode off on his tweaker Bat bike.

One thing is for sure, this job allows you to do things that people in normal clothes can’t do. Could you imagine pulling up alongside parolee man on a bike and asking for a picture of his shirt?

Sometimes you just have to have fun on this job.