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Yesterday on a crowded inbound C-line to downtown, I managed to procure a coveted seat. With no coffee yet, I promptly leaned my head against the wall and closed my eyes, attempting to doze.
It was a quiet train. Morning commutes are always like that. So when someone starts talking, the conversation sounds clear as day.
There was a 20-something girl next to me reading a book. A 20-something guy was standing in front of her -- being a packed train, he was holding onto the bar above her.
I'm still trying to doze when this guy suddenly starts talking to the girl.
"Is it true if you talk to more than one person on the train in the morning, you turn into a Tanzanian termite mound?"
"Uh. Not that I know of," the girl replied, and went back to reading her book.
The guy then walked away to take a seat across the way and all was quiet again. I had to double check myself to make sure I didn't just dream that bizarre moment, but I was definitely awake.
It was either one of the strangest pickup lines ever/failed attempt to start a conversation and make the girl laugh, or the guy was tripping on something at 8:30 in the morning.
Showing posts with label mbta. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mbta. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Ummm...Kenmore?
This morning was just another sardine-packed C-line train into Boston, as it always is during rush hour. I'm seriously considering asking my internship if I can come in at 10 instead of 9. Getting on the first C-line train after 9 is like a little slice of heaven. A seat waiting for you right next to the door. Light coming in through the windows. Space to breathe.
After the usual stop and go above-ground, the train headed into the tunnel and stopped at Kenmore. 10 seconds pass. Doors don't open. A business-suit guy next to me yells to the driver, "BACK DOORS!" 20 seconds pass. The train moves about 10 feet farther up the track, and then stops again. I look to the front of the train and see the doors up there aren't opening either. 30 seconds. More people start screaming "DOORS!" The train then starts up again and moves onto Hynes. Lots of grumbling and "Wait, seriously? Did the train just SKIP Kenmore?" ensue. There was no announcement made saying the left doors weren't working. I'm wondering if the T driver even noticed.
After the usual stop and go above-ground, the train headed into the tunnel and stopped at Kenmore. 10 seconds pass. Doors don't open. A business-suit guy next to me yells to the driver, "BACK DOORS!" 20 seconds pass. The train moves about 10 feet farther up the track, and then stops again. I look to the front of the train and see the doors up there aren't opening either. 30 seconds. More people start screaming "DOORS!" The train then starts up again and moves onto Hynes. Lots of grumbling and "Wait, seriously? Did the train just SKIP Kenmore?" ensue. There was no announcement made saying the left doors weren't working. I'm wondering if the T driver even noticed.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Stuck on the C line...
Ah. Light.
One of my favorite parts of an otherwise drab day is leaving the C line tunnel from Kenmore and pulling up to St. Mary’s Street. I don’t know why the feeling of leaving an underground tunnel and seeing the light makes me happy, especially since I don’t have claustrophobia or anything. But today it just felt awesome.
Probably because it was the exact opposite of what happened this morning on the rush hour commute. Everyone who was on a Green line outbound trains knows what I’m talking about – the collision at Boylston, how the MBTA didn’t tell anyone what was going on, the massive delays. I got on the T as usual in Brookline and the ride was going fine until we hit Kenmore. There were tons of people waiting on the platform, and they all smashed in. It was one of those you-can-barely-move-to-hold-onto-the-bar commutes. At least this time I didn’t have a person much, much shorter than me crushing my hip and making me bend sideways so I can hold onto the bar.
We moved a little bit slow and got to Hynes. Between Hynes and Copley however, the train came to a complete standstill. The guy sitting in front of me had a watch on and I saw the minutes tick by. After 10 minutes, the guy standing beside me started to get restless…kept muttering “fuck” under his breath. After 15 minutes, he was full out whining to himself. The T drivers announced once every couple minutes that there was a “situation at Boylston Street.” Finally after 20 minutes, we moved about 30 feet and pulled into the Copley station. I ran off the train, along with half the riders, just so I could move and breathe again. It was a mass exodus as we all walked down Boylston Street in a foggy drizzle and I came upon fire trucks, ambulances, and various other strobe-lighted vehicles outside the Boylston stop. I asked one of the surly campus cops outside Emerson College what happened, and finally I found out when he said two trains collided. I hope everyone's okay -- I saw a couple articles (and comments on articles) saying quite a few people were thrown to the floor of the train. I got to work (which is right by the Boylston stop) 45 minutes late.
The MBTA makes me pine for the quiet, clean, and never late trains in Japan.
One of my favorite parts of an otherwise drab day is leaving the C line tunnel from Kenmore and pulling up to St. Mary’s Street. I don’t know why the feeling of leaving an underground tunnel and seeing the light makes me happy, especially since I don’t have claustrophobia or anything. But today it just felt awesome.
Probably because it was the exact opposite of what happened this morning on the rush hour commute. Everyone who was on a Green line outbound trains knows what I’m talking about – the collision at Boylston, how the MBTA didn’t tell anyone what was going on, the massive delays. I got on the T as usual in Brookline and the ride was going fine until we hit Kenmore. There were tons of people waiting on the platform, and they all smashed in. It was one of those you-can-barely-move-to-hold-onto-the-bar commutes. At least this time I didn’t have a person much, much shorter than me crushing my hip and making me bend sideways so I can hold onto the bar.
We moved a little bit slow and got to Hynes. Between Hynes and Copley however, the train came to a complete standstill. The guy sitting in front of me had a watch on and I saw the minutes tick by. After 10 minutes, the guy standing beside me started to get restless…kept muttering “fuck” under his breath. After 15 minutes, he was full out whining to himself. The T drivers announced once every couple minutes that there was a “situation at Boylston Street.” Finally after 20 minutes, we moved about 30 feet and pulled into the Copley station. I ran off the train, along with half the riders, just so I could move and breathe again. It was a mass exodus as we all walked down Boylston Street in a foggy drizzle and I came upon fire trucks, ambulances, and various other strobe-lighted vehicles outside the Boylston stop. I asked one of the surly campus cops outside Emerson College what happened, and finally I found out when he said two trains collided. I hope everyone's okay -- I saw a couple articles (and comments on articles) saying quite a few people were thrown to the floor of the train. I got to work (which is right by the Boylston stop) 45 minutes late.
The MBTA makes me pine for the quiet, clean, and never late trains in Japan.
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