Photo of the Day: Sunset Signs of Hope

The days are getting longer.

If you catch an earlier train, and remember to look up,

you'll catch sight of some fiery ribbons of light.

~ photo by iPhone

Train Training: January 15, 2015

Readers, if I can leave you with nothing else from your 10-15 seconds reading this entry - or even ANY reading of this blog - let it be this.

DON'T BE THESE PEOPLE!

That is a five-seater on a train, where two people obliviots* are taking up all of the seats. People are standing in the vestibule because these two Seat Hogs are spread out, 

eating a three-course meal, with bags everywhere.

I took this a year ago - and I'm STILL so annoyed I had to share it as a PSA.

 DON'T BE THESE PEOPLE.

Also - it was FREAKING COLD that day. I don't know how she sat there with her lap and legs exposed like that.

*(Oblivious Idiots)

~photos by iTouch

43 Ideas for Birthday 43: Teleporters, Tardis(s) & Travel

When people ask what I'd like for my extra-sensory or super-power, I always answer:

Teleportation

I spend so much time in transit, from one place to another, and my family lives so far away, I miss a lot of birthdays, milestones, parties, anniversaries, and just the little daily things.

Since I'm not suddenly going to come into my powers, and teleport myself places ... 

It's 2015. How are those teleporters coming along, secret government scientific research agencies?

If someone could get me a Tardis or a Teleporter for my birthday, that'd be grand. 

 Beam me up, anyone!

 

 

 Oh Doctor, my doctor!

Winter Woes: Tales of Treacherous Travels via Trains

Well, this certainly has been a wild winter and a bunch of wild transportation.

Polar Vortex anyone? 

Sometimes a photographic mistake is a surrealistic truth.

 There's been too many nights of travel that looks like this:

Not to mention, platforms that look like this:

Views from the platforms look like this:

It really starts to get to you.

You start to think about alternate transportation options.

Forget the train. One day - maybe this could be my ride.

Innocuous debris in the subway begins to remind you of

Frosty the Snowman.

Frosty RIP 2013-2013

If he had a REALLY bad night.

You rejoice in empty train cars, even if they are wrapped in the yucky competitor's cola*,

 and even if it is for some Sportsball Cup Event Thingy (TM).

You trudge to the train, only to be lulled out of the trudge 

by the dulcet sounds of a classical guitar wafting up an almost empty corridor.

Thank you traveling troubadour.

The guitar music totally was a graceful note that I try to remember, and NOT the night I spent three hours on the floor of Grand Central with thousands of people because Metro-North lost power to their control room - grinding the train wheels of transportation to a complete standstill.

This was my limited view. I did not venture forth from my spot by the Eastern staircase at the foot of the Apple Store very often. It was a mob scene.

I looked at this ... a lot for three hours.

Did I say three hours? Did both my phone and my iTouch almost die because all I did was send out updates and try to figure out if I was staying in the City overnight, even though I didn't have an overnight bag? Yes.

Some notes from my phones from that evening:

* Missing Grand Central's grand waiting rooms and bench seats in scenarios like this. And walls of power outlets to recharge devices.

* I bet the iFruit store, FrozenDrinkHut & FrostedSITCtreat places at Grand Central rake in the $$$ tonight with stranded crowds. [Ed. Note: Apple Store, Shake Shake, Magnolia Bakery]

* Today's #momentsofgrace: being acutely grateful to be stuck in Grand Central & not on a train in ParkAve tunnel or cold rails.

* LOOK Mr Announcer Dude. "Temporarily" is the wrong word if it has been more than an hr. "temporarily suspended" is code, right? [Ed. Note: they said "temporarily" for over 2 hours. SERIOUSLY!]

* And the NYC media has arrived. I see shoulder cams. Time for 10 & 11pm news clips. (Like that is going to help us one damn bit). [Ed. Note: It didn't.]

* People at my old job used to mock the fact that I kept a "go bag" under my desk with change of clothes, etc. Regretting I don't have 1 now. [Ed. Note: I prepped and packed one the next weekend. It still has yet to get to the new job. A fact that was regrettable given the weather the first 2 weeks of the new job.]

* Trying to remain positive. Standing &\or sitting on cold marble in the Terminal is better than being stuck on a cold dark train.

* Just declined giving a quote to traditional print media re: situation. Because, you know, "privacy" & all that. I do appreciate the "irony." [Ed. Note: Also invited to do a phone interview with television. Didn't get message. Declined follow-up later. Because, you know, "privacy" and all that.]

* Karma is a wonderful thing. I charged an old lady's phone when stuck in Salt Lake. A nice businessman is charging my phone in Grand Central.

* Phone battery dead. Nice business man had to go. News later. Signing off to save.

* I also think I will be "experiencing considerable residual delays" for my inbound NYC commute tomorrow.

* On the 11:13 local on track 27, packed to bursting, when conductor tells the entire train to move to track 28.

* The kicker of tonight's commute from heck? If I had just worked until 10:30 on my 6th to last day, like usual, I would have missed the mess.

* I beg to differ. We were NOT "bemused." Not 1 tiny bit. MT @nytimes Metro-North Grinds to a Halt W/ Computer Trouble http://nyti.ms/1c8ZFSZ


I am ever so grateful to be heading in the opposite direction now, where I can stay with friends, or stay in guest quarters.

If we all survive the winter and don't get stuck somewhere en route to somewhere ... it will be a miracle.



*I will drink it, if it's free.

Photo of the Day: Time Clock

 

This is the actual time in the p.m. when I was standing on the subway platform Wednesday night after:

Working since 9:30 a.m.;

Standing in the cold for 10 minutes waiting for the 1 train; and

Representative of me frantically checking my watch to see if:

I will make the 11:13 train home, and 

If it is Monday yet?

Updates: made the 11:13, walked into Attic at 11:53. I think. So tired. This whole work thing is old already.

LATER UPDATES: 

And this scene was repeated on Thursday, Friday, and then an hour later on Saturday. LONG WEEK.

-iTouch