Blog Archive

Monday, November 12, 2012

This will happen, and I will have rage as a result

The good news about moving cross-country is I don't have to ride the DC Metro system anymore. We all know how I felt about that system, after all.

However, my new commute isn't without its troubles. I have a lot of distance to cover, and over a pretty heavily-travelled corridor. It can kind of suck. The drive, which is about 20 miles end to end, can take anywhere from 40 minutes to an hour twenty. Those hour-twenty days are rough.


Even with my audiobook going the entire time, I still contort into a ball of rage and by the time I arrive at my destination, my whole face is sore from clenching my jaw. Not good.

So, clever girl that I am, I looked into riding the commuter train, and wouldn't you know, it runs from a station 1.2 miles from our house to a station 1.8 miles from my office!

Of course, the train also has its downsides. There isn't enough parking at the station, so I have to take a bus to the train to another bus to my office. This means rushing out the door like a maniac on train mornings and sprinting to the corner, only to stand in the cold pre-dawn rain waiting for the bus to come. And in the afternoons, the bus that takes me to the station cuts it so close time-wise that if it's running even 4 or 5 minutes late, we'll all miss the train.


So, since both methods of transport have their pros and cons, I cleverly decided to alternate. That way, I won't get too pissed about the traffic because I'll appreciate the convenience of leaving whenever I want and not having to stand outside ... and I won't get too pissed about missing the train every now and again because hey, it beats sitting in traffic!

There's just one problem: one of these days, I'm going to fuck it all up.

By the end of the work day, my brain's pretty fried. It's also mushy. It's like McDonald's french fries that have been sitting in the car overnight. So here's what is going to happen on some future day that I have tentatively called The Second Worst Day Ever:

I will drive in in the morning.


I'll put in my eight hours, and then at the end of the day, I'll go stand on the street.

 
 
 
 
Such a setback, while incredibly frustrating (especially if we were planning on going anywhere that night) is nothing compared to what I am tentatively calling The Worst Day Ever.
 
On that day, I will ride the train up in the morning and work my eight hours. At the end of the day, I'll pack up my things and head down to the parking lot:
 



And after a quick scan, I will realize that something is amiss.

And of course, by the time I realize this, I will have missed my usual bus. And then it will start to rain, because it's Seattle and it always rains.


The spraypaint tool really captures the feeling of hopelessness, don't you think?

By the time I get home that night, I will be soaked through, freezing cold, starving, an hour late, and in such a frothy rage that all the homebrew in the kegerator won't calm me down.

(well, maybe it will. Okay, it probably will).


I know this post isn't particularly funny, but I think it's important. Because someday there will be a post titled only "IT HAPPENED" ... and it will contain nothing except a stream of curses in large-fonted capital letters, and a link to this post.

And then you will all know.

And you can have a good laugh at my expense.

So, you're welcome in advance. Though it would be great if you guys could help to remind me: I take the train M-W-F and drive in Tuesday and Thursday.

DON'T LET ME FORGET.

K thanks :-)

2 comments:

  1. Well it's Monday....GET ON THAT TRAIN!

    My commute sucks just as bad, but public trans isnt much of an option (especially as a young woman...bad things have happened and have left me very bitter about our trans system). I drive 20 miles point to point and its about an hour drive. Forget it if there is rain, a threat of ice, Friday afternoon, a leaf falling from the tree six states away...its just miserable.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha thanks for the reminder! Though today is a holiday so I didn't go to work... So now my whole weekly schedule is thrown off. I'd better tattoo the driving/train riding schedule to my forearm. It's my only hope!!

      Delete