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Rest in peace Jim Pagels. Jim was a lot of things—a flowering economist, a first-class writer, and a passionate urbanist. But to me, he was a really dear friend. Love and miss you man.
The last time I physically spent time with Jim, I was packing to move from DC—a city he adored—to LA last summer. He came over and we ended up watched every episode of Nathan for You with the commentary tracks on and absolutely died laughing.
We have been robbed of a lot of amazing writing and economics research that Jim was going to do, but he leaves behind a lot of fantastic work. I'll never forget his epic manifesto against binge watching. You can honor his legacy by pacing yourself. https://slate.com/culture/2012/07/binge-watching-tv-why-you-need-to-stop.html
Jim pivoted from writing to economics, a herculean career change that involved earning a master's at Georgetown and a fellowship at the Fed to have even a snowflake's chance in hell at getting into a top econ program. And it worked—he was ecstatic when he got into Michigan.
He liked to play it cool, but you didn't have to know Jim for long to realize he was super competitive when it came to boardgames. He'd explain the rules to you for a game like Carcassonne, beat you to a pulp, and then make up by baking you brownies. https://slate.com/culture/2013/06/monopoly-auction-rule-official-yes-smart-no.html
I once beat Jim at Castles of Mad King Ludwig. I'd bring it up, he would play it cool, and then ask if I wanted to play again. I was smart enough to say no—I always knew that was a fluke. He could pick apart a game like nobody's business. https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-scoring-for-the-decathlon-and-heptathlon-favors-running-over-throwing/
Jim's passion near the end of his life was cities—making them affordable and multimodal. (He loved DC in particular.) We were always talking about research ideas he had on topics related to housing or transportation. https://marketurbanism.com/2016/09/23/parking-in-a-dc-bike-lane-is-extremely-cost-effective-for-drivers/
He was super passionate about bicycling. If you're worried about "using" his death to demand that DC gets its act together on bicycle infrastructure, don't be—it's what he would've wanted. His last tweet was a joke about this very subject—so true to Jim. https://twitter.com/jimpagels/status/1380578057598214149?s=20
When you see a story like this, remember that the anonymous bicyclist is someone's loved one, someone's dear friend. The traffic violence that took took Jim's life is a choice. We honor his legacy by ensuring that it never happens again. https://wtop.com/dc/2021/04/bicyclist-dead-3-injured-after-multi-vehicle-crash-in-northwest-dc/
In the coming days, I'll be assembling some of my memories of Jim. If you have memories of Jim Pagels that you would like to share, please feel free to DM me or reply, so that I can add them. I'll also be relaying funeral arrangements, as they are made.
Appreciate all the kind words. I have collected a few of my memories of Jim here. If you would like me to add your memories or thoughts to it, please reply or send me a DM. https://link.medium.com/jx0smGLGnfb
A group will be holding a memorial for Jim and installing a ghost bike at 2nd Street and Massachusetts Ave NW on Thursday at 6pm, to be followed by a memorial ride. Please join if you can. https://facebook.com/events/818814985713521/?acontext=%7B%22ref%22%3A%2252%22%2C%22action_history%22%3A%22[%7B%5C%22surface%5C%22%3A%5C%22share_link%5C%22%2C%5C%22mechanism%5C%22%3A%5C%22share_link%5C%22%2C%5C%22extra_data%5C%22%3A%7B%5C%22invite_link_id%5C%22%3A140174501383446%7D%7D]%22%7D
![A group will be holding a memorial for Jim and installing a ghost bike at 2nd Street and Massachusetts Ave NW on Thursday at 6pm, to be followed by a memorial ride. Please join if you can. https://facebook.com/events/818814985713521/?acontext=%7B%22ref%22%3A%2252%22%2C%22action_history%22%3A%22[%7B%5C%22surface%5C%22%3A%5C%22share_link%5C%22%2C%5C%22mechanism%5C%22%3A%5C%22share_link%5C%22%2C%5C%22extra_data%5C%22%3A%7B%5C%22invite_link_id%5C%22%3A140174501383446%7D%7D]%22%7D](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EyvWx7jVEAM73TH.png "A group will be holding a memorial for Jim and installing a ghost bike at 2nd Street and Massachusetts Ave NW on Thursday at 6pm, to be followed by a memorial ride. Please join if you can. https://facebook.com/events/818814985713521/?acontext=%7B%22ref%22%3A%2252%22%2C%22action_history%22%3A%22[%7B%5C%22surface%5C%22%3A%5C%22share_link%5C%22%2C%5C%22mechanism%5C%22%3A%5C%22share_link%5C%22%2C%5C%22extra_data%5C%22%3A%7B%5C%22invite_link_id%5C%22%3A140174501383446%7D%7D]%22%7D")
