There is a difference in the people who hand out fliers to restaurants, nudie bars, and various sales (usually jewlery) at stores on the corner.

You have your standard slackers, that just hold it out, waiting for you to take it on the fly-by. And then there are the more aggressive, that place the ad directly in your path. And then you have the truly talented that give a one man show, hopping from foot to foot, talking it up like an auction bidder 'Yes sir, yes sir, right this way.. c'mon and try it today.. here you go, take one, thank you, and have a nice day!'

I've developed a somewhat unconscious way of avoiding taking these bits of paper that eventually will overflow the pockets of my jacket, causing me to lose either my MetroCard or the specs for the new system I'm working on.

I'm always scanning the foot traffic ahead of me. Then I time my passing so that another poor sap has the person's attention, the hand out, the flier alreasy destined for a quick shove in the pocket, or balled-up shot at the next garbage can.

Awareness is nine-tenths of the battle.