What is wrong with people?

You encounter so many people on public transit if you take it everyday. WMATA has the joy is serving every type of customer in the Washington, DC region, but you get some very interesting characters on the MARC train as well. Here are a few of the experiences I've had, as well as deplored the people making these strange, and gross things happen.

So, on the MARC trains, they very explicitly ask you to not put your feet on the seats of the cars, but yet it happens.

This is not your living room. Please put your shoes back on.

Speaking of shoes, I've definitely heard the sound of nail clippers on the train before. I really hope that they're doing their hands and not their feet, although both are equally gross, in my opinion, to do in a public space.

My face the first time I heard that sound...and it continued for an entire train ride to DC.

Then there's the smells. Sometimes in the summer, we've all sat next to someone who didn't apply deodorant as liberally as one should during June, July and August in swampy DC, but hey, it's summer, it's gonna happen. And unlike WMATA, you can bring food and drink onto the train to eat and sometimes I'm jealous of those people's dinners with the smells I'm smelling, but other times it's something so all-encompassing that it just elicits an... 

'Nuff said.

Can anyone say seafood? 

Finally, yesterday I had one of the most annoying experiences on a train. The man across from me did not stop for about 40 minutes straight, chomping his gum, with his mouth hanging open, between chews. I tried to glare at him, but it didn't work. I even tried to put a piece of gum in my own mouth, hoping the sounds of myself chewing (mouth closed, of course) would drown him out in my head. Nope. Needless to say, I was happy to finally get off the train and let him continue on to his destination and have dinner with the cows. 

Yeah, I went there.

I mean, from time to time, I'm sure I do things that annoy or gross people out on the train. You know like putting on my make-up because I was running late that morning, or pulling my hair back into a ponytail, or probably the one thing that actually MAY gross someone out, depending -- changing from my regular walking flats to my gym socks and sneakers to save time. Yeah, all those things I just listed...not that gross!

Anyway, hopefully this is the only list I have to make and it never gets any longer. And for your Friday...

Pounce!

Oof.

Past my time!

I'm overdue for a post. 

I know it's been awhile since I was regularly posting and I had taken a hiatus from commuting for about 2 weeks in June and just never got back to thinking about funny stories or interesting topics for you all. 

Also, I've been pretty lucky in these few weeks since I returned to commuting on the train again, so in that honor, I'll leave you this GIF and make the promise to start thinking deeply about my commutes once more.

Thursday Blues-day...wait, that doesn't rhyme...

Yes that doesn't rhyme and it was just one more thing to go wrong on my commute home yesterday. I left work right around 5 pm, but a couple minutes later than I normally would. I will call this mistake number 1. 

I waited at Judiciary Square on the Glenmont side for probably 20 minutes. 2 trains came through in that time, both of them packed to the gills with people and no one getting off. During this same time I counted 7 or 8 trains going towards Shady Grove -- clearly they were not having any issues on that track. I finally gave up and decided to walk to Union Station* (mistake #2 -- more explanation on that at the end of the post). PS - I've been having an issue with my right foot in the last week and it gets irritated the more I walk or use it, hence, all the time I'm upright, so this was a fun almost mile walk, in the heat yesterday afternoon. 

By that point, I had missed the 5:20 pm train, and might make the 5:40 pm departure. Nope. Didn't happen. Especially with the foot issue. I walked into the station right at 5:40 and wasn't even going to attempt any sort of rushing movement. 

I was definitely no Betty Boop yesterday. 

All red-faced and limping.

The next train didn't leave until 6:20 pm, so I sat and waited. Only to receive an e-mail that THAT train might be delayed due to equipment issues. By 6:13 pm, a track still hadn't been posted for the 6:20 train (they usually post them anywhere from 15-20 minutes out from departure, if known). At that point, I received an e-alert that the 6:20 WOULD in fact be leaving on time, but with one less car, so to expect "crowded conditions". Yay. 

Because I received the e-mail, I started making my way out to the platforms and as I reached the door, I was lucky enough to hear the MARC customer service rep say that our train would be on track A-15. Yippee! I was one of the first people on the train and got a seat thankfully due to that saintly MARC rep. 

But wait, there's more.

::Stomps foot::

But, I don't wanna, Heather Dubrow of the OC Housewives (love her!).

The train I got on had no power, so it was hot. And quiet. And dark. And it seemed like the conductors weren't sure it would turn on, hence the delay and issues. But come what may, at 6:35 pm (15 minutes after the train was supposed to leave, if you're keeping track), the power came on and by 6:40, we were moving westward - Hallelujah!

I finally arrived home at 7:30 pm, 2.5 hours after I left work and ready for some pizza - thanks, hubs! - and HBO -- re-watching The Wire after reading this yesterday...LOVE LOVE LOVE that show. 

*Ultimately, I should have decided to just cross the platform at Judiciary Square and take a train in the other direction towards Shady Grove, getting off at Rockville and catching the MARC train to Germantown from there. I probably would have caught my earlier intended 5:20 train or at worst, the 5:40 train from Union Station from there AND I wouldn't have lost money standing on the Metro platform. Oh well, lesson learned. 

I still don't know why everything was royally messed up yesterday afternoon, maybe it had something to do with the fabulous year WMATA has been having so far. Lord only knows.

Happy Friday, y'all. Here's a puppy rolling around in a ball pit to make myself and you feel better about life.

Signage much?

Just read this in the WaPo about better signage at Metro stations and how we could all stand to learn a few lessons from our forefathers in London. 

Honestly, I don't really know if it's bad or good in terms of signage on the Metro. Maybe it's because I've just been riding long enough to know which stop I'm at without looking up (at least on the Red Line). Either way, a few times I've had to look up (I was tired, ok?) it is sometimes VERY hard to see outside the windows to a sign and if you're on an older car, the inside LED screens NEVER work. So, I guess WMATA could stand to make things a bit brighter and re-program some of their technology.

10 years in the making...

So, I realized I needed to write this post before the month of May is over; it's been sitting as a draft in my folder since March or before. Anywho, the point of this post is to celebrate that I've officially been a commuter for 10 years now. Well not full-time for the whole 10 years, but it was 10 years ago this month that I had my first taste of what it would be like to commute daily to a job, via a train. 

It was what I liked to dub "the best, most expensive summer" of my young life. I was 21, had just returned from an amazing study abroad experience with my art history pals in Greece (the best and most expensive part). I had actually had my birthday to celebrate my legal drinking status while in a small fishing village, in the southernmost part of the Peloponnese region of the country -- probably my best birthday to date. 

See!? There's me and a cake in that tiny fishing village in Greece! 

Opa!

I returned home and within a day or two, was set to start a full-time, 2-month, unpaid internship in the heart of Washington, DC at the Smithsonian American Art Museum  -- again, hence the expensive part bolded above. To help with those expenses, I lived at home with my parents in Frederick County, Maryland and decided I would take the MARC train each day, versus the Metro where you faithful readers would know, I'd had to pay to park and it would have easily been a 1-hour drive on the congested I-270 from my little rural town just to get to Shady Grove (I'm much more conveniently located nowadays).

I remember the Sunday before I was supposed to start, my parents and I took a drive from Middletown, MD to Brunswick, MD, showing me the beautiful route through Burkittsville, MD -- where they are most famous for this cult horror film. It was about a 20 minute drive to the station from my childhood home and there was ample parking in Brunswick, so was the ideal place for me to pick-up the train. My parents thought if I could buy my ticket the day or night before I wouldn't have to worry about it on my first day. I remember I wasn't able to since the station was closed for the weekend and alas, the ticket would have to be bought on the train the next morning. (I'm just now remembering how much planning my parents instilled in me -- it's very evident as I get older.) 

The next day, I woke up at 5 am (yes, you heard me) to catch the 6:30 train from Brunswick. I got to the station in plenty of time and was one of the first people on the train since Brunswick was the point of origination for this particular train. I remember the feeling of nervousness and excitement, all contained in my young, fresh 21-year-old self and I definitely remember feeling how mature I seemed -- commuting into the big city with all these seasoned, hardened professionals! 

90 minutes later, I believe I made it to DC with no incident and proceeded to take the Metro the two stops on the Red Line over to Gallery Place/Chinatown. My first day, I'm sure, was a blur, and most of the other interns were living in the city, paying several hundred dollars to rent a room or be a part of a house-share, as they were not local. In that, I was very thankful. (Even though the 5 am wake-up time continued ALL. SUMMER. LONG. Let me tell you, as a college student...this was not easy and usually resulted in a 10pm bedtime...oy!) But I do remember the return trip home that first day.

Since it was the end of May, late afternoon summertime storms are a regular occurrence in an area like Washington due to all the humidity. Our train (at 5:20pm, I believe) was delayed leaving the station for some reason -- maybe for only 10 minutes, but still, delayed. Then there were heat-restrictions in place, meaning the trains have to travel at a reduced speed when the temperature gets above a certain point (85 degrees Fahrenheit I want to say?). Then finally, as we got closer to Brunswick, I recall the heavens opening up and dumping something fierce on the train. Lightning, thunder, and bears, oh my. It only lasted maybe 5-10 minutes before it was over and then the train stopped. Whaaaaaa?

Apparently lightning had struck a tree further up and part of it had fallen along the tracks. Now, we were stuck. I think we finally started moving about a half hour later. By the time I reached my car at Brunswick, it was after 8pm and I knew that when got home, I'd only be able to eat dinner before I passed out to do it all over again the next day. My mother (to this day even) could tell you I was so irate by the time I came home; I kept telling her how helpless I felt being stuck on the train and "at least in a car, you can find an alternate route!!" ...Oh, tiny, young little Me, how little did you know. How impatient you would become. 

She seriously thought I wouldn't last the whole summer doing this commute. Neither did I. Today, I much prefer the being trapped on a train if there's an issue, because being trapped in a train happens FAR LESS than being trapped in car, in slow-moving traffic, in this VERY, VERY congested area of the country. Thankfully, I think I just had bad luck to have the one of very few times the train had an issue on my first day. After that, I only remember one other serious delay that summer and that was with Metro, within the District, and well, you all know how regularly that happens. (No thanks to this!)

When my internship ended at the end of July, I spent the rest of the summer before my senior year traveling to Arizona and cruising the Caribbean for one of my best friend's weddings (again, another reason why it was the best and most expensive summer ever). The internship and all the traveling had left me feeling so grown-up and ready for the next phase of life and starting my career. 

Here I am in Cozumel, Mexico (via the cruise), apparently showing off a cow.

There were also moments on the train that summer where I felt very lucky. Each and every morning, the train would come around a corner before arriving at Union Station and if I was in the correct seat, you could see the dome of the Capitol in the distance. The first time I saw it, I got goosebumps and continued to get them everyday. How lucky was I to be able to travel to and from the Nation's Capital each day to learn from the people who were working in my desired field, and in part because of that experience, where I would ultimately end up for my career.

I wouldn't commute on a train again until I started working once more in the DC area back in the spring of 2010. I would then start commuting full-time on one in the fall of 2012. And since then, each and every day, I still feel that lucky as I did in 2005. You can no longer see the Capitol Dome as you round that corner -- much of the area around Union Station has changed in that 10 year period and although no buildings reach higher than the Dome, the angles and shapes of the newer buildings do obscure it from view. 

But you know what? I still get goosebumps. I get them when I step off the train and all the people rush towards the station each morning. I feel them as I see the Capitol right in front of me as I exit Union Station. I get shivers daily when I walk into my Museum, knowing I ultimately ended up right where I belong. And, it's overwhelming when I actually think about it all and thank the universe for giving me that opportunity so long ago.

Sorry to have been such a sap and reminisce on this long post, but I have been crafting it in my head and in my drafts folder, probably since I started this blog, or before. Thank you for sticking with me -- through the post and through the blog so far. I hope I can continue to offer witty, intelligent and sometimes silly commentary on the life of being a commuter. Apologies for any typos - I'll firm up soon.

Don't stop, MOVE (to the side)!

Ahhh, warm summer months in DC bring the most dreaded time of year for anyone who lives here -- tourist season. Although it technically starts much earlier in March or April with the Cherry Blossoms, it continues straight through Labor Day with Segway tours, matching t-shirts, and just overall hell for the crowd-anxious people of the world (me). And as much as I appreciate them stimulating our local economy with their hard-earned tourist dollars, I just implore one thing to them as a daily commuter...

For the love of Pete (Sorry, Pete, whoever you are), if you're going to stop and look at your phone on what Metro stop you need next, or check a map for directions (do people still use these?!), or perhaps dig around in a purse or pocket to find your Metro card, PLEASE (and I really do say this nicely...in exchange, I will not yell at you on the escalator when you stand to the left, mmmk?), MOVE TO THE SIDE AND GET OUT OF THE WAY. 

Maybe this is Pete's sister?

I feel this is just common sense whenever you visit a new city or place, but it baffles me how many people don't realize how bad of an idea this truly is at 5pm on a Tuesday at Union Station. Anyway, rant over. Go about your days, people. 

Oy vey, Monday.

Oof, it was a bad start to the week on Metro this morning. Thankful I don't have to ride the blue-orange-silver line most days and not thankful that it makes for a very simple blog post from the Local Motive Girl. Still, I think the going score is Smoke and Fire - 2, Metro - 0.

We feel your pain, Woody.