Monday October 31, 2005

Departure Time: 7:26
Arrival Time: 8:17
Weather as I call it: Sunny and 60's -- better than snow
Paper Guy: Teddy bear ear warmer
Shady Gas Price: $2.35 ---should be $2.19
Yelled at other drivers: No
Feared for my life: No

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I thought I would see more drivers in costume today. No such luck....just commuters in the same costumes they wear every workday.

Friday October 28, 2005

Departure Time: 7:33
Arrival Time: 8:26
Weather as I call it: Cloudy and in the 40's
Paper Guy: He loves his beige with teddy bear print ear-warmer-head-thing.
Shady Gas Price: Holding steady at $2.39
Yelled at other drivers: Nope
Feared for my life: Nope

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I don't know if anyone else saw this sign, but there is a bank that I see on my way to work that has one of those electric signs that displays a whole bunch of info: their mortgage rates, the date, the time, and the temperature. When I drove by it today, something was a little off:

Rate: 3.25% (seems right)
Date: Oct. 28th (correct)
Time: 7:48 AM (maybe a few seconds off)
Temp: 264º F (I don't think Paper Guy would be wearing his head gear in that kind of heat.)

Maybe the bank was presenting a reading from the planet Venus. I wonder if the rates are lower there?

Thursday October 27, 2005

Departure Time: 7:30
Arrival Time: 8:25
Weather as I call it: Cold...but at least it wasn't raining.
Paper Guy: Same exact outfit as yesterday...yes, really.
Shady Gas Price: $2.39
Yelled at other drivers: Yes. See below.
Feared for my life: No

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Hey Dump Truck Driver!

Thank you for moving over into the right lane as if to formally invite me to pass you. I was surprised when you moved back in front of my car just as I started accelerating. Confused, I did wonder about your driving techniques as the lanes dropped from two to one and I was forced to crawl to a stop behind you. There was a name spray painted on one of your mud flaps. You may have heard me yell out "Thanks, Ray!" as I finally passed you in East Somerville.

Wednesday October 26, 2005

Departure Time: 7:30
Arrival Time: 8:26
Weather as I call it: The sun is back, but colder...40ish
Paper Guy: Back with the teddy bear ear warmer wrap thing
Shady Gas Price: $2.39 I think.
Yelled at other drivers: I saw a co-worker on Soldier's Field Road...so I yelled at him.
Feared for my life: No.
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Pretty uneventful today. I should rant about the Leverett Circle intersection at some point...but let me build up more rage about it...it's always better with more rage behind the typing.

Tuesday October 25, 2005

Departure Time: 7:32
Arrival Time: 8:30
Weather as I call it: Nor' Eastah...wind driven rain
Paper Guy: Back for the attack. I felt bad for him today. Tan Jacket, No Shades, Black Ear Warmer
Shady Gas Price: $2.41 Wow.
Yelled at other drivers: Once, after I dropped my wife off at the T. This woman almost hit me.
Feared for my life: No.

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A branch flew off a tree and hit my windshield. My wipers had fun with it for about 20 minutes. Even though it was raining hard today, my commute wasn't that bad. It could have been much worse and much longer. Looking around work today, it looks like most people are still out on the road right now.

Monday October 24, 2005

Departure Time: 7:31
Arrival Time: 8:24
Weather as I call it: Partly sunny and cool
Paper Guy: He wasn't there?
Shady Gas Price: $2.45
Yelled at other drivers: Yes, One woman decided to jump the double yellow line and drive towards me on Memorial Drive
Feared for my life: Once, see above.

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Peeps, Paper Guy wasn't there this morning. Yet, his newspapers were...?

Stay tuned.

Friday October 21, 2005

Departure Time: 7:32
Arrival Time: 8:26
Weather as I call it: Sunny and clear
Paper Guy: I need more space to describe his ensemble.
Shady Gas Price: $2.49
Yelled at other drivers: No
Feared for my life: Nope

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1. I saw a mattress on the side of the road today.
2. Paper guy was wearing his tan jacket and shades and on top of his head, he has a strange ear-warmer-type-thing. These are the things I know: It was tan, it didn't cover the top of his head, it covered his ears, it had a teddy bear print.
3. One year ago was the best drive to work ever. You could feel the electricity charging through the city. Finally, the Red Sox had beat the Yankees.

Driving west on Storrow Drive and seeing that someone had updated the sign and made the verb past tense made it all real.

Thursday October 20, 2005

Departure Time: 7:31
Arrival Time: 8:32 (Ugh)
Weather as I call it: Clear skies and sunny...These are the good autumn days
Paper Guy: Tan jacket and shades...no need for the winter hat today.
Shady Gas Price: $2.49 --this price should be lower by now.
Yelled at other drivers: Nope
Feared for my life: Nope

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I am not sure what the heck happened today. My theory is: Oprah Winfrey went to Medford, MA and started performing her magic.

YOU GET A CAR!

AND YOU GET A CAR!

AND YOU GET A CAR!

AND YOU GET A CAR!

and all the recipients of these free cars decided to drive through the intersection depicted below at 7:55 this morning.

It was brutal....

Wednesday October 19, 2005

Departure Time: 7:31
Arrival Time: 8:21
Weather as I call it: 51 degrees. Sunny.
Paper Guy: Tan Jacket. Winter hat. The Shades. He was yearning for a sale today.
Shady Gas Price: $2.49
Yelled at other drivers: I did say, "hey" at someone pulling into my lane
Feared for my life: Not today.

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Two bumper stickers. Same car.

What does this say about the driver?

(I am an ex-hippie who used to get beaten up on the playground)

Maybe they should make that phrase into a bumper sticker.

Just joking, fellow commuter.

Tuesday October 18, 2005

Departure Time: 7:28
Arrival Time: 8:24
Weather as I call it: Mostly cloudy...some rain...around 50 degrees.
Paper Guy: Same outfit as yesterday. Same exact outfit as yesterday.
Shady Gas Price: $2.53
Yelled at other drivers: I did smirk at one lady who was trying to pull in front of me from a parallel parked position
Feared for my life: Not today.

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Please forgive me, ma'am. Yes, I did cut you off as the lanes merged from two to one. Yes, I did look in my side view mirror a little too late to see you there. Yes, I did deserve the little 'toot' from your little Toyota's horn. I do apologize. I hope you noticed my head hang in shame as I put up my left hand to communicate my acknowledgement of the mistake I made.

Monday October 17, 2005

Departure Time: 7:28
Arrival Time: 8:14
Weather as I call it: Partly Sunny 53 degrees
Paper Guy: Tan Jacket and winter hat (I guess I didn't get him in trouble...but it is way too early for the winter hat.
Shady Gas Price: I didn't see it today. I was too busy running a red light.
Yelled at other drivers: No
Feared for my life: No





I don't think everybody works on Monday. Without looking at the data, I would have to say that my Monday commute tends to be easier than other days. Now that I think of it, maybe most people get "late starts" on Monday...and I take advantage of it by leaving two minutes under half past seven.

Friday October 14, 2005

Departure Time: 7:39
Arrival Time: 8:38
Weather as I call it: I am officially depressed. Increasing more consistent rain the closer I got to work.
Paper Guy: Tan jacket...wild glasses...see details below.
Shady Gas Price: $2.57
Yelled at other drivers: I called some woman in a Jeep Liberty an 'idiot'.
Feared for my life: I hydroplaned a little on Soldier's Field Rd. and it got my heart rate up a bit.

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Interesting report on Paper Guy today. So, as I approached his intersection...I could see someone in a Black Taurus was waving at him to call him over. Paper Guy seems to instantly recognize this person and starts hustling over to the car. There was a quick exchange of pleasantries....and then something odd happened. It looked to me that person in Taurus was trying to pay for his paper, but Paper Guy waved off his payment. Then, some awkward touching begins. I think Paper Guy wanted to hug this person, but physically couldn't get through the half-opened window to make a proper embrace. Paper Guy gave the person some hearty shoulder pats...and then the light turned green.

Later on, I passed this Taurus and noticed it was a guy behind the wheel. Surely, he's a fan of the blog and they were 'playing it up' for the report.

P.S. I hope I didn't get Paper Guy in trouble.

Thursday, October 13, 2005

Departure Time: 7:38
Arrival Time: 8:25
Weather as I call it: Will the sun ever shine again? Light intermittent rain
Paper Guy: N/A
Shady Gas Price: N/A
Yelled at other drivers: No
Feared for my life: No

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I drove my wife into work today so I didn't see the regular stuff. Witnessed a senseless act of kindness today. While sitting at a red light in front of the new convention center in Southie, a taxi actually moved out of my way to allow me to make a right turn on red. Now, he stuck himself dangerously into the intersection...and he cut off the person stopped in the left lane at the light...but he let li'l old me go through.

He must have read my post from yesterday and knew I mean business...and when you have the cabbies on your side, you are one step closer to ruling the road.

Wednesday October 12, 2005

Departure Time: 7:28
Arrival Time: 8:26
Weather as I call it: Gloomy. The Hancock tower appears to be swallowed by the sky.
Paper Guy: Wearing the winter hat! Shades! Also made a sale as I drove by. Good job!
Shady Gas Price: Holding steady at $2.65
Yelled at other drivers: Well, I beeped once
Feared for my life: Ish

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Ok.

1. Backhoes cause for big problems. They aren't made for speed...and that makes for cars that ride behind them to make hasty decisions in order to get around them (see "Feared for my life" section above).

2. Right on red is allowed unless posted. Let me explain. You can take a right turn at a red light after coming to a complete stop and make sure it is safe to proceed unless there is a sign posted that states "No Turn On Red". Let's get into it, peeps. (See "Yelled at other drivers" section above...I actually beeped a few times.)

3. Storrow Drive/Soldier's Field road is for "pleasure vehicles only"... but 18 wheelers still get on the road somehow. It happened today...and I was glad I was travelling westbound...and not stuck in the mess on the other side of the divider.

Tuesday October 11, 2005

Departure Time: 7:33 (Damn you, Columbus)
Arrival Time: 8:32
Weather as I call it: Dreary. I don't think I have seen the sun in four days
Paper Guy: Tan Jacket...no shades
Shady Gas Price: $2.65
Yelled at other drivers: Zero
Feared for my life: Nope

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Long weekend so no post on Monday. I did see someone almost drive into oncoming traffic on Route 28. That was a surprise. Thankfully, they figured it out before it got...unsightly.

Friday October 7, 2005

Departure Time: 7:27
Arrival Time: 8:20
Weather as I call it: Partly Sunny and Humid...I thought it was October.
Paper Guy: Button-up shirt...no need for the jacket today.
Shady Gas Price: $2.67
Yelled at other drivers: Nope
Feared for my life: Not today

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A pretty uneventful commute...but some thoughts:

I am now 93.6% sure that if I come up behind an SUV that is going slow and weaving back and forth between lanes, there is a cell phone involved.

Maybe I should chart out departure times and arrival times after a few months of recording them...maybe there are some trends?

Enjoy the weekend, fellow drivers. See you out on the roads.

Thursday October 6, 2005

Departure Time: 7:34 (I am seeing a pattern here)
Arrival Time: 8:26
Weather as I call it: Foggy again...When did we move to San Fran?
Paper Guy: Blue sweater and the shades
Shady Gas Price: $2.71
Yelled at other drivers: Once
Feared for my life: Once

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If you are driving on the road with me--traveling in the opposite direction--and you cross the double yellow lines to pass another car...and it seems as if we are going to be in some sort of head on collision...Two things will happen:

1. Yelling

2. Fearing

Vans stink!

Wednesday October 5, 2005

Departure Time: 7:34 (ooof!)
Arrival Time: 8:18
Weather as I call it: Foggy and cloudy still.
Paper Guy: Shades and Jacket
Shady Gas Price: $2.71 (must be the reserves keeping prices down)
Yelled at other drivers: Nope
Feared for my life: Nope

The last two days have been pretty great getting through town. I am not really sure why, but both the high school and the middle school that we pass each day have seemed...closed. There is no explantion on the school's official website.

It's odd but welcomed.

Tuesday October 4, 2005

Departure Time: 7:24
Arrival Time: 8:15
Weather as I call it: FOGGY...overcast skies
Paper Guy: No shades...but he did have his jacket on.
Shady Gas Price: Didn't see it.
Yelled at other drivers: Once-ish
Feared for my life: Nope

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• I shrugged my shoulders at one driver who pulled her SUV so far into my lane to make a left turn I could not pass. When I say I shrugged my sholders, I mean I did a full, palms up and out shrug so that she understood that I was confused by her action.
• I have to congratulate the guy who was driving the 1992 Pontiac LeMans. Let me count the reasons why:

1. His phone use caused him to drive about 22 miles per hour and weave in and out of lanes...
2. Which caused me to be caught at a red light...
3. Which caused me to look over at him (since I tried to pass him before the red light) and saw that he was using a car phone that Fred Flintstone might have used
4. To top it off, his hood was smashed up a bit...so he has had his trouble.

God speed, fellow commuter!

Monday October 3, 2005

Departure Time: 7:33 (late start Monday)
Arrival Time: 8:24 (Everyone else did too.)
Weather as I call it: Fair skies...60's
Paper Guy: Wearing a beige Members Only type jacket. Shades--On!
Shady Gas Price: $2.75
Yelled at other drivers: zero
Feared for my life: not today

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Who is the Paper Guy? He's just a guy who is trying to do the best he can everyday. For the purposes of this blog, he is my independent weather indicator. Unlike my pampered, cube dwelling butt, this guy has to work outside for a living. He sells newspapers to the waiting drivers sitting at the red light. He walks up and down the line of cars looking for those who want to enrich their lives with one or both of Boston's major dailies...and God bless him, he always makes sales quickly and never holds up traffic. Ride on, Paper guy. Soon, your heavy snow gear will make the report, unfortunately....