Getting Better Getting Worse

Well, I voted in the morning and got on the highway earlier than I did yesterday. The volume on the road was higher than yesterday so there was more stop and go than yesterday. It took a few minutes more than yesterday. I think that I am learning the way better but with more cars, there was more time on the road.

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Departure Time From Home:6:50
Arrival Time at Work: 8:12
Weather as I call it: Sunny, 40s again
Shady Gas Price: $3.43
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 2
Feared for my life: No

Driving to Work Again

All right. Making the blog relevant to its name again. Drove all the way to work thanks to my GPS and rusty driving skills. So far so good. I didn't know how long it would take me to get there but I like the hour long commute. I will take it. More to come. Just gotta keep taking notes and see if I can get the time down more.

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Departure Time From Home: 7:08
Arrival Time at Work: 8:05
Weather as I call it: Sunny, high 40s
Shady Gas Price: $3.43
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 2
Feared for my life: Nope

Everything Changes Again Monday

I drove into Alewife and took the red line into Boston today - Alewife to DTX - no big deal. I got a little breakfast as a last reminder that I won't have the same grub in the new work neighborhood. So, the table below is incomplete and the new table get published on Monday. SEE YA!

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Departure Time From Home: 6:00
Departure Time From Train Station: N/A
Arrival Time at North Station: N/A
Weather as I call it: Sunny, 40s
Shady Gas Price: $3.46
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 1
Feared for my life: Nope

Last Day On The Commuter Rail For Now

I took a trip on the commuter rail and it will be the last time I do that for a while. Tomorrow I am going to take the red line from Alewife for reasons that I don't want to share with you but I needed to mention it because it is the reason that today will be the last day I take the commuter rail for a while. I was smiling. Everyone else was looking and feeling and acting as they normally do but me - I was smiling. I was happy. See you next time train. I am sure we'll meet again.

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Departure Time From Home: 6:31
Departure Time From Train Station: 6:59
Arrival Time at North Station: 7:41
Weather as I call it: Sunny, 50s
Shady Gas Price: $3.46
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 1
Feared for my life: No

Remember The Characters

It's crazy to think that my train rides are not going to happen next week. Not much to report on the commute today. I sat in a two seater and had a nice person sit next to me. No weirdness. I kept to my side - she kept to hers. I have begun to recall all the characters I used to see on this commute. I haven't seen the Greeter all this year. I wish all the characters the best.

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Departure Time From Home: 6:32
Departure Time From Train Station: 6:59
Arrival Time at North Station: 7:40
Weather as I call it: Cloudy, some wind
Shady Gas Price: $3.46
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 2
Feared for my life: Nope

Three Person Seats

When I take a seat with someone else already sitting in a three person seat, I sit on the opposite side. They sit next to the window, and I sit near the aisle. I keep the space between us. When someone else wants to sit down, I slide over. I don't get up and then take the "aisle seat" again. I see why people do it, but it's a selfish move (they keep the opportunity to be the first one out of the seat when we get to North Station) and it just takes up time. There's a good 10 seconds of getting up and shuffling with the person who wants to sit down while everyone standing in the aisle waits until everyone is seated. Just slide over like I do. Yeah, you'll probably creep out the person who is in the window seat but that's their issue. Boston Strong, baby. Love your neighbor. Get used to sharing some social space.

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Departure Time From Home: 6:33
Departure Time From Train Station: 6:59
Arrival Time at North Station: 7:41
Weather as I call it: Cloudy, misty when I got to Boston. 40s
Shady Gas Price: $3.46
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 2
Feared for my life: No

Awkward Time

With my last week of this current job just started, there are some things I will not miss on the train. I not miss that awkward moment of figuring out who is going to leave the train first - you or the person across from you. It happened today and I think the person across from me thought I was going to let them go first but I didn't - I went first. I apologize for not reading the social signals. I apologize for moving right behind the person right next to me, who got up before me, and was aggressive. I am sorry. Let's put it this way - I probably won't see you again after this week.

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Departure Time From Home: 6:55
Departure Time From Train Station: 7:26
Arrival Time at North Station: 8:11
Weather as I call it: Sunny, cool, high 30s
Shady Gas Price: $3.46
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 3
Feared for my life: No

Hard Seat

I sat on the commuter rail seat and it was hard. You could tell it was a replacement for an older one but man was it hard. The guy who sat next to me commented on its hardness. "I plopped down thinking it was going to soft," he said. "I should have known since it was new." The weather really is beautiful these days. The sun sparkles on the police officer's machine gun.

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Departure Time From Home: 7:00
Departure Time From Train Station: 7:28
Arrival Time at North Station: 8:06
Weather as I call it: Sunny, cool
Shady Gas Price: $3.49
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 2
Feared for my life: Nope

The Invisible Eye

I took the much later train and was happy with the stops they passed over. The much later train doesn't stop at every stop. I saw a dude that I work with on this train. He caught up to me and we walked most of the way to the office together. I saw another dude I used to work with on the way. I didn't stop to say hi because he was fiddling with his phone and had his ear buds in. Sometimes I walk this city as an aware ghost. I see people but they don't see me and I don't alert them to my presence. I am not sure if that is a marketable skill or a disorder. I tend to see people before they see me - it's good for avoiding people. I saw the dude I work with on the train before he saw me. I chose not to avoid him. I am the invisible eye. Seeing but not seen.

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Departure Time From Home: 7:30
Departure Time From Train Station: 7:54
Arrival Time at North Station: 8:35
Weather as I call it: Sunny, nice, 40s
Shady Gas Price: $3.49
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 1
Feared for my life: Nope

Carry On

Well, yesterday was a horrible day for the city that I love - that I believe in - that I feel attached to and probably always will. When staring at the abyss, there are only two things we have. Love and hope. It's the only things we have, really, in any situation. I feel awful for the people who were hurt just because they decided to stand and witness one of the best events this city has to offer. May the answers come quickly. May the healing be even swifter.

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Departure Time From Home: 7:00
Departure Time From Train Station: 7:26
Arrival Time at North Station: 8:08
Weather as I call it: Sunny, cool
Shady Gas Price: $3.49
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 0
Feared for my life: No

I Don't Know

I took some time off from writing on this blog. I don't know how long I took but it feels like six weeks. The break was fine. There wasn't much that happened in that span of time. We had some snow. I saw a wild turkey outside of 1 Exchange Place in Boston. No really, he was walking in front of the building and there were two security guards following him with walkie talkies in there hands. They kept a close eye on it, watching and walking behind it with walkie talkies in their hands and stern looks on their faces. Soon, I will changing jobs again and I will be driving the whole way. No more train, which I will miss and not miss at the same time. My wallet will not miss the train at all. I hope to be inspired to write more here. But...

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Departure Time From Home: 7:03
Departure Time From Train Station: 7:26
Arrival Time at North Station: 8:04
Weather as I call it: Sunny, cool, 30s
Shady Gas Price: $3.49
Level of commute annoyance (scale of 1 to 10): 2
Feared for my life: Nope