INCONVENIENCES

How often do things go the way you want or the way you had planned? Would guess that the majority would say seldom. Nobody likes to be inconvenienced but it seems to REALLY BUG me to the point I want to blow, especially when those inconveniences pile up on the same day.

The Metro Rail. Oh, it’s what it claims--gets you there fairly quickly, lets you avoid bumper to bumper traffic, runs pretty consistently without much waiting, reasonably priced, and several stations have free parking. What you don’t know until your first experience--that free parking has very limited spaces; the rest park on the street and how far away, depends on the time of day (hey, that rhymes). The seating--standing room only. More people board than get off and it’s a game of musical chairs at each stop--a mad rush to get the empty seats. Was relatively quiet until a man who was standing decided to preach to everybody within hearing capacity of our compartment. Fire and brimstone material, without the yelling, with Bible verses quoted. The guy didn’t miss a beat; no hesitation, and I looked around to see if he was reading a script. None. Have a feeling this individual does this on a regular basis. No wonder so many people ride--there are no security or checking systems to see whether everybody has paid.

Worked at the downtown LA Convention Center for four days, two of those days ten hours each and getting home at 9:00pm. Arrived in plenty of time and walked around to find the area we would be located. Sat for a while and then called the boss at the time she was to be there. Of course, she was still at the office in Orange County. Can’t say I was surprised. She is always late to the office and lives within walking distance.

Some of the rides were more relaxing than others because there was plenty of seating, but Saturday was the worse. The tracks between two stations were being repaired which meant getting off the train and taking a bus to the next station and catching the next train to go to your destination. Had I known that ahead of time, would have made other arrangements, meaning I just would not have worked (spent about three hours time round trip and only worked four). A homeless gal sat there with her bus pass and cart full of her belongings and felt somewhat sorry for her until I caught a glimpse of the empty Bacardi bottle in the mix. Also on this Saturday decided the majority of the commuters are either drunks, sluts, foul-mouth psychos, or ill-mannered teens (although felt it at the time, this is somewhat of an exaggeration, but it makes for more interesting reading). Yes, public transportation does seem to entertain and you can expect the unexpected.

However, after four days of this I will not get a job in downtown LA and drive or commute by train or any other means of public transportation.