Offense of the day

Hey there, ho there, faithful readers (hi mom!).

Since my last post, I had a baby. So, there's that. It happened about 2 1/2 weeks after my last entry to this blog, to be quite honest; my little one made their debut much earlier than anticipated and still weighed over 8 lbs. So, yeah -- way to be wrong in calculating due dates, doctors. Now I understand why I was so miserable those last few weeks in the DC heat. 

What I felt like during the last months of pregnancy.

Anywho, I returned to work last month and am back to the commuting. Overall, it's been OK. I know Metro is going through it again with large swaths of firings due to budget constraints. And Mr. Wiedefeld is definitely showing his exhaustion with this job. But overall, I haven't had too many issues that I can recall enough to complain about, but I'm also a new mother, so that might just be the lack of coffee in my system for not remembering.

This is not my child, but man, can I relate some days.

I also spent part of my first month back to commuting coming in from West Virginia on the MARC train. Well, kinda West Virginia. I stayed with my parents who live out there near the Harper's Ferry/Charles Town area, but I drove over to Brunswick, MD to catch the train for the few days I was staying there. There's ample parking at that station and more options for getting to DC each day. Even so, it led to much longer days than I wanted -- getting up at the same time as I would if I were home, to travel further and longer. Then I was arriving to work a bit later and getting home later in the evening. It was do-able, but I'm glad I don't do that everyday. It also was worth it so my parents could enjoy time with my little one and I didn't stress about him very much.

Love me some Atlanta housewives. And me at the end of my long WV commute.

So here we are today, and I've found my first offender since back on the commute. You all might know him as "The Leaner". You know, the guy who leans all over the poles of the Metro car, not giving you any spot to grab on when the train decides to herk and jerk its way to the next stop. 

Thanks, Patrick Stewart for contributing to this madness. 

(Note: I did not see Patrick Stewart this morning.)

So there I am, all 5 foot 3 inches of me, bundled up in winter gear, carrying two bags (one being a heavy-ish breast pump) and trying to strain my dominant arm up to the only available place to hold on to, about 2.5 feet above my head. And he's just straight chilling next to me, leaning up against the only pole I could realistically reach -- one of the handicap accessible areas by a door (which, of course, leads to less places for people to grab onto in general). 

How I felt rolling into Judiciary Square today.

Then as the train came into my station, since he is by the door, he proceeded to NOT step out of the train to let people exit. He just stood there. Still leaning. Still being oblivious to his rudeness. I hope my breast pump hit him on the way out. 

Happy Monday, y'all. It's good to be back! 

She moves in mysterious ways, and very, very slowly...

So, again, my apologies for not posting anything since April. It's been crazy in my personal and professional life, so even though ideas percolate for a post or two, I don't always get the chance to jot them down, but I'm finally taking a half hour to get something out there for you faithful readers (again, thanks, Mom!).

For starters, I have a quick update in terms of my personal life, which relates to part of this post, buuuuuuut...I'm about six weeks away from popping out a child! Yup, you read that correct -- I'm very much preggers. 

Haven't tried this yet, but I have no plans tonight...

Just a funny lady dancing with her belly.

This impacts my commute greatly the further along I get in gestation. I'm finding it harder and harder to walk quickly to catch my train in the normal 15 minutes I used to allow myself when leaving work in the evening. Now, I leave 40 minutes before the train leaves and take bathroom breaks on either end. Oh, the joys...

I'm also starting to notice how many more people are willing to give up their seat for me on the Metro. I wrote about this once and how I only thought the seats in the middle of the train with signage were for the disabled (or one might say, "very pregnant lady with swollen ankles"), but I'm getting offers for seats all over the train almost daily -- mostly from other women. I've gotten one or two males chivalrously willing to give up their seats, but I only take someone up on it if I'm on the train for more than a few stops. Since I typically only go one stop, I usually say "No thank you" -- it's easier than sitting down and getting back up in the short time I'm actually riding the Metro. (All that extra weight on your hips makes it hard to sit too -- oy!)

I have to admit this pregnancy has been fairly easy and uneventful beyond the normal swollen-ness that tends to be exacerbated with the July/August humidity in Washington, DC. I'm ready to be done with the whole carting around this extra 30 pounds or so and hold that cute squishy baby every day. But alas, the kid still has to cook a bit longer.

In other news, I have also ridden the Metro three times with the WMATA General Manager, Paul Wiedefeld. When I say "ridden", I do mean, like standing right next to the dude on the Metro car and getting off at Union Station together. The first time he got off at the station, I thought "Oh, he must have a meeting here or something." The second time, I watched where he went (no, I'm not a stalker...) and he actually takes the MARC train too -- to somewhere near Baltimore, but alas -- TRAIN BUDDIES! 

So, I give the guy some credit, he actually takes the Metro to and from work, and beyond that, invests himself in other modes of public transit! As much as the Metro sucks these days, I have faith that he'll get the job done and we'll once again not have to wait 12-18 minutes for a train during this hell he's created called SAFE TRACK. Oh, I guess I haven't had to mention that before since it started in June and it's been...well, it's been less than pleasant, but completely necessary. I'm just more ticked off about the timing of all this paired with the condition I'm currently in.

Anyway, I'm rambling. It's also Friday, so here's a cute puppy for both #nationaldogday and the fact that I'm soooooo jealous of this dog right now. 

This would be the life for me today.