Commuting has a lot of advantages and disadvantages. Let's start with the disadvantages... Because that's all I can think about right now. Traffic has been SO awful in the mornings that even when I get on a bus 5 or 10 minutes earlier, I'm still late. This morning for an example, I got to the bus station a few minutes early to try to get on an earlier bus. I noticed that a car parked on the hill had its door open, but no one was in the car or around the car. Being the day after Halloween, I wasn't going to put myself in some weird Halloween aftermath and try to see where the driver disappeared to. I was planning to tell the security at the bus station to have them to check. And maybe I'm overreacting and someone just left their door open in the pouring rain?
I run down, can't find a security officer, so I hop on the bus. The driver said their were a few seats left, I walk to the back of the bus and there were 3 potential seats. Seats where 2 can fit very comfortably, but if you add a 3rd person, it's a little tight. Well, these lovely commuters didn't budge. No one moved their bag or scooted over. So, as I walk off the bus I say loud enough for the whole bus to hear "I'll just catch the next one, no one wanted to make any room back there." The bus driver said he would make them make room, but I said thanks but no thanks. I wasn't about to piss off the already pissy people on the bus.
Well, it's 7:45 and I am normally just about to get on my connecting bus right about now. Guess where I am? Boeing. Stopped. I imagine I will be about 30 minutes late? Probably more, 30 minutes is a pretty generous guess.
Summer traffic is awful in the afternoon and okay in the morning. The summer afternoons are full of Sounders traffic, Mariners traffic, people being idiots traffic.
Fall and winter traffic is awful in the morning and awful in the afternoon. It's dark, cold, gloomy, and wet. I swear it rains 90% of the year and we have a month or two of total dryness and everyone forgets how to drive in the rain.
It's honestly like people are surprised by the rain. "Gosh, I can't believe this weather!" Oh really? That's odd since you've lived here your whole life... And it rains like this 9 months out of the year... EVERY year!
It's been 10 minutes... And all I can see is Boeing.
Okay, there are some great things about commuting.
#1 - I'm not driving.
And thank God for that. If you've followed my posts, you know I can be an idiot driver.
#2 - It's cheap.
I pay $7 a month and my work pays for the rest. I don't pay for parking, I don't pay for gas, I don't get road rage.
#3 - I get to read.
In the last 6 weeks, I've finished 4 books... JUST reading on the bus to and from work.
#4 - The bus drivers
I have grown to love my bus drivers. It pays to be nice to them. If they see you sprinting down the road, they'll wait for you. But only if you are nice to them and make a point to say hi and thank you. They play jokes on you and wave at you, then pretend they aren't going to pick you up, just to tease you. They ask where you were the other day if you didn't catch their bus.
They may not always run on time, but they always get me home safely.
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