The end of an era...

Well the time has come, everyone. As of next week, I will no longer be a full-time public transit commuter. Before I begin my sob story and explanation, I will let you all know that when reviewing the lifetime of this blog (est. 2014), 2016 and 2017 were not stellar years for posts. I mean I guess carrying a human inside you for the majority of the first year mentioned and then actually caring for said human during the second and current one, doesn't leave a whole lot of time for blogging, especially with a full-time job. And any free time I do have (you know the 20 minutes before I pass out at night, or before a child begins to fuss and needs to be fed), is usually spent watching Bravo and eating three-day old Mac & Cheese, straight out the fridge. Priorities. Don't judge. 

Anywho, I hope you, you fellow readers, do not feel cheated these past two years. Maybe my commutes just weren't that exciting and I was not compelled enough to write a blog about it, or perhaps the fun little stories and thoughts in my head are just now consumed by the cuteness that is a baby in my life. Even so, this will be my last post as a regular commuter and maybe I'll make guest appearances on my own blog from time to time, if an experience or situation renders it so, because...

I got a new job! So, instead of working at a large Museum in DC, I'll be working for a small private college in the city of Frederick, MD. There's only one, so if you really want to know where, Google it. From where we currently live in Montgomery County, it's about a 20 minute drive, AGAINST TRAFFIC, one-way. This means, I'm getting about 2.5 hours of my day back in about 2 weeks. Amaze-balls. It was a tough decision to make since working at a Museum had been the ultimate goal and a career high-point for me. Why wouldn't I stay?! (See reference to cute baby thoughts above.) It is the best choice for me and the famiglia at this point in our lives. 

Fun fact: we are also looking to move to Frederick, so my commute at that point will make my 26 through 30-something-year-old-self very jealous. I haven't had an easy commute since I lived in Baltimore and could WALK TO WORK. So this will be beyond worth it. 

Now, in honor of my new gig, and new commute, I wanted to leave you all with my top 5. The top 5 things I will miss about the train every day, and the top 5 things I won't. Without any further ado...

SLEEP 

While my actual morning routine will improve and I won't be awake on purpose at 5 am anymore to get into the city, I will miss the ability to sleep during my commute. Not so easy when behind the wheel of a car. Now with a tiny human, any extra Z's I can get are always welcome!

BEING A NICE PERSON

Two words: Road Rage. I will definitely probably start my bad habits of yelling at other drivers, or being confounded by the ever unsolvable mysteries of bottlenecking, but thankfully my commute in a car will be headed in the opposite direction of the hoards of cars headed south on I-270 and once relocated, those back roads, or multiple alternatives to work will be my saving grace.

BUILT-IN EXERCISE

That new FitBit I just got will need some extra motivation once the commute changes. Right now, I walk quite a bit. When pregnant, it felt like I was walking 10,000 miles a day, in the heat, carrying a sack of potatoes stuffed under my dress. Now that I'll be in a car for 40 minutes a day (again, until we move), I will have to make the extra effort to get my butt to the gym, or take the kiddo for a walk in the evenings. But that's what all that extra time is for now, right?! (No, really it's for watching more Bravo and heating up my food. Let's be honest...)

PEOPLE WATCHING

This blog is evidence how much I like observing and seeing society at work. Especially when confined to close quarters [insert evil laugh]. Now, I'll be resigned to just accidentally seeing people pick their nose in the car next to me, or trying to figure out what that vanity license plate is supposed to stand for. So low-brow compared to the train.

WASHINGTON, DC

See this blog post. I've always been more of a city person and ever since I could remember, I wanted to be in (working, living, or playing) DC. My husband and I share such affection for this city and its where we spent time early on in our relationship, so I'll miss not having access to it every single day. Oh, and all the lunch spots. I'll miss those too.

So, now for the things I will not miss... 

THE OUTDOORS

And what comes with it. Mainly, weather. Don't get me wrong, I love nature and I love spending time in it. But really more so, on my terms and when I'm fully prepared for it, or have alternatives to not be in it in case of inclementation (not a word). I'll love not carting around an umbrella in my purse on a regular basis (that sucker makes it heavy!) and will absolutely live for the glorious-ness that is heat inside of my car and not spending more than 2 minutes outside walking from it to my office.

BLEEDING MONEY

While I'm a complete advocate for the cost benefit of taking public transit, with my shortened commute I will HALVE what I spend in commuting costs to DC daily. With WMATA ever-increasing their fares and even MARC upping theirs in the last year, it adds up and I was spending close to $4,000 annually to get to my job. That's some good deniro back in my pocket. 

SCHEDULE 

I'll definitely not miss being beholden to one when commuting. I'm a type-A person and I like to be on time, if not early, to pretty much everything in life. Therefore, it's super stressful to try and catch a train by running to it, or frantically watching my watch to leave enough time to make sure I can catch my last ride out of the city. Along these lines, I will also not miss the delays that occur and then impact my own schedule in terms of getting home to spend time with the hubster and my little guy. So, as WMATA continues to drag along like the months it takes for Game of Thrones to come back this year, I won't miss dealing with the powers that be (and other commuters too!) 'effing with my time.

TIME AWAY

I feel like this photo alone is my motivation for pretty much everything in life. No funny gif needed here. This is the reason I'm leaving you all for a life out in the country (not really, and shhh! Don't tell my husband I said that...he's even more attached to urban living than I am!). I will not miss the time away from my son. 

I'm sure I'll still have many tales to tell as I begin to travel for my current position. So let's not call this goodbye, but just a disembarkation at the current stop. I'll see you all on the other side of town!

This Tuesday might as well be a Monday...

Well I had myself a 2.5 hour commute this morning, door-to-door. In fairness, I did actually go and vote during that time as well, but even so, should have only taken me 90 minutes or so. So, here's what happened...

Left my house at 6:45 am, arrived to vote at 6:56 am -- was the fourth person in line and was out the door by 7:15 am. Then it took me the usual 15 (or so) minutes to get to the train station (with traffic on I-270) and I was just in time for the 7:34 am train to Washington. I stood there for 10 minutes in The Line (with some lady thinking she could cut in front of me -- she ended up moving up the line and low and behold, she cut in front of us all to stand right at the front of the line! Grrrr...more on her later). Finally got an e-mail and heard an announcement that the train we were waiting for was broken down and there would be a delay of 20-25 minutes. Um, ok. I believe it was 8:09 by the time I got on a train. (Which ironically pulled up and was not in line with where people had lined up, therefore Cutting Lady, as we'll call her, was no longer in the front of the line -- I was second in line based on where I was standing -- wahoo!)

Now we have a crowded train situation going on here, as evidenced on my Instagram this morning. And it's a loooooong ride into Union Station this morning. I feel so bad for anyone who comes after the Germantown stop on days like these -- they are probably better off getting in their car and driving themselves to where they need to be, because there is no way they are getting on this train between Germantown and Rockville when issues arise. 

Finally, I'm bounding down the train steps onto the platform and waltzing into the Metro station (for free! thankyouverymuchMetroforhonoringmyMARCticket.) just after 9 am. I decide when I walk into work, I deserve a 2nd coffee at the moment and reserve a Diet Coke for lunch, so it's 9:15 by the time I get into the elevator. That equals 2.5 hours, door-to-door. Blarg.

On top of that, I have already had issues with my bank, couldn't get my contact lenses in this morning so am wearing my old, weak glasses, and no one is at work because they are sick (fingers crossed I stay healthy until after this weekend at least!) so it will be hard to get anything done today. So, happy 2nd Monday everyone -- at least I did my civic duty this morning!

Woot! Exercising my right as a 'mercan.

The Beginning

I'm often posting on my Facebook page or telling people funny stories of my commute to and from work in Washington, DC. As I work on this blog, I'll explain more about my decision in going from a 50-mile a day car commuter down one of the worst highways in the region, to an (on average) hour-long trip (door to door) on a commuter train/metrorail where I can sleep, read, play on my phone or just look out the window (if I'm lucky enough to get a seat on the inside). 

People keep saying, "You should write a book!" So, in this, the modern day of 2014, I decided instead to start a blog. I'll have to go back to my Facebook page to find some of the snarky quips of the very rude, or funny people I've encountered in the past 2 years I've been a full-time public transit commuter to help theme some posts. Sometimes, there are even warm moments of humanity and humbleness that I witness from time to time. But alas, I'll also treat this as a journal, recounting my journey as we go along, on this journey together! (ha!)

Today, Monday, was my first day riding the MARC train since early last week. I had several work and outside of work commitments that made me have to ride on the Metro system instead. There are advantages to taking the MARC, but one main disadvantage in that the last train to my neck of the woods leaves Union Station at 7:25pm -- doesn't exactly work for the development professional who has to attend after-hours work events. Either way, today was a nice reprieve from the more crowded Red Line on the Metro and the only bad part was I forgot the fun red umbrella that says "Keep Dry and Carry On" that I bought in London on my honeymoon in the seat, where I had been sitting on the way home this evening. Le sigh. 

Anyway, here's to anyone who'll read this and give me a shot. I'll try to keep posts from being too long or too boring and I'll vary them up from time to time - fun pictures! maybe some cute dog photos or baking recipes too. Either way, please enjoy and know that I'm not behind the wheel each day, raising my blood pressure and most likely yelling at people in cars on I-270.