Chronicling my people watching, observations, experiences in my daily commute on Metrolink, for no other reason than to pass the time and smile a bit.
hen you become part of mass transportation, you have to learn to share, kind of like pre-school, only for grown-ups.
Now, I do realize that the concept of personal space as a basic right is uniquely American in origin, God forbid we ever have to stuff people on the train like they do in Japan (see video here), and although there are some rights that we relinquish in order to benefit from mass transportation, there are some we retain.
Typical upstairs seating on Metrolink Trains
There are three levels of seating on a Metrolink train: all of which have similar configurations and are, basically, closer than sitting in a movie theater, but not as close as the Honda Center (see previous post here).
Most of the seating has pairs of seats facing each other for a group of four, some with tables but most do not have those.
Typically, I don’t sit in a group with tables, as I believe they should be saved for the laptop people, which brings me to today’s post. (more…)
Categories: Etc. · civility
Tagged: metrolink
October 23, 2009 · 1 Comment
I realize that the topic of this blog post is an anomaly for this site; however, I thought I’d share some of my thoughts as a first-timer.
My husband has loved the Lakers since they were in their namesake state: Minnesota, which, I admit dates him a bit. (You can read more about their history here.) The point being, that he’s not a “new” fan as I am. A bit about how I slowly by slowly became a Laker fan is found in this post on Psalm 37:4. I bought him Arsenal tickets for his birthday, but I was sick and we didn’t get to go.
So, I found out that the Lakers were playing at Honda Center in a pre-season game. For $38 each, I thought it was a good deal. October is a late birthday celebration for a February birthday, but it was still very exciting.
I’ve never been to a professional sports game. Now, I’ve been to the Honda Center back when it was the Arrowhead Pond for a few Gaither concerts, but I’ve never sat in the 400 section before. Mercier wanted to be sure to see the whole game. He assured me that sitting higher was better, for the overview, and as close as possible either to the center or a goal (the basket).
When will NBA come to Orange County?
(more…)
Categories: Etc. · Reviews
Tagged: Honda Center, Lakers
commercial kitchen exhaust fan dominates the sounds heard from the train platform.
When I close my eyes the background nuances move into the foreground in a single file line, like school children boarding their bus.
Tap, tap, ta tap goes the light drizzle on their instruments: metal flashing on lamp posts. The two ladies next to me have a hushed conversation with a German accent. Faintly, a rooster makes himself known with his morning call and the black crow chimes in his part to the song.
Tha-thump drag drag, tha-thump drag drag goes the rolling luggage-work that was brought home for the evening. Slosh, shlosh, skippity-slosh as a teenager shuffles in her sheepskin boots.
Shh. Wait. What do I hear? Faintly, but boldly, the low hum of the train horn accompanied by the ding, ding, ding tells me that my wait in the cold, rainy morning is over.
Categories: Etc. · writing
Tagged: metrolink, rain, train
Santa Ana Train Station
Chronicling my people watching, observations, experiences in my daily commute on Metrolink, for no other reason than to pass the time and smile a bit.
Backstory: I’ve been commuting for the last five years to work every day on Metrolink.
Yesterday, I posted this on my facebook status:
Dear Metrolink Passengers, You know our morning train is always crowded, yet you have the audacity to take up a perfectly good seat with your personal belongings. Have you no sense of common decency? Personal space is the price we pay to participate in mass transportation.
Then my aunt said I should have been more assertive in asking the lady to move her stuff.
Today, I’m happy to report I asked a lady to move her stuff so I could sit, which she did, begrudgingly with an amazing amount of huffing and puffing and excuses why she took up a vacant seat.
It never ceases to amaze me how selfish people truly are. If you watch, you will come to the same conclusion:
Some of today’s observations:
The sleeping guy catacorner stretched his legs across to the other chair. There are two sets of seats facing eachother. I should have gotten a photo! A bunch of people passed him by at my station, but by the time passengers arrived from Laguna Niguel, a gentleman sat down anyway. ka plunk. Mr. Sleepy had to move his legs. (more…)
Categories: Etc.
Tagged: commute, metrolink, train
Both of my books, “Bagel by the Sea: A Collection of Devotional Essays and Poems,” and “On the Mountain: A Devotional Journey with the Lord for the Worship Leader” are now available for download on your Kindle.
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