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| Toni Thanas |
All I’m trying to do is read my book in the quiet car, but the lady across from me is snoring so loud I can’t even think straight.
She should really sit in another car; her snoring is not exactly “quiet.”
Oh the joys of commuting. Prior to this summer, I was a public transportation rookie. I had maybe been on a Metra train once in my life and I had never been on the CTA. No buses, no subway, no “L.”
So when I got my job at SMG, I was freakin out…How am I going to get to work? What is the Metra like? What IS the Metra? The CTA? Will I be forced to sit next to smelly people???
I, of course, found out all of the answers to these questions.
The Metra is the commuter rail agency that serves the greater Chicagoland area. It’s a really popular method of transportation, since Chicago traffic and parking can be awful most of the time. In the month of May alone Metra ridership was 6,845,000. They have 11 different lines that you could ride on too, so they go virtually everywhere.
The Chicago Transit Authority, or CTA, is the sister company of Metra, only they service the city of Chicago with the L (mass transit rail) and buses.
Both the Metra and the CTA have become my best friends this summer.
I take the Rock Island into the LaSalle Street Station. Then I take the brown line to State and Lake and on the way back I take the purple or pink line to LaSalle. I also experimented with the bus system for a short period of time from Union Station to 35 W. Wacker, but I’ve found the L to be far superior to the busses, especially with the Wacker construction in full swing now.
With my almost nine weeks of experience now, let me reassure you commuting virgins out there—it’s not that bad.
In fact, I actually kind of like it. Allow me to explain.
First, it allows me to sleep in longer. I am able to finish my makeup on the train, leaving me one less thing to do at home. I know it sounds weird at first, but seriously every single woman is facing the window and staring into their compact for the first 10 minutes of the ride.
Second, it provides an excellent backdrop for getting work done. Answering emails on my blackberry, writing summer school assignments, reading books, playing around on my laptop—it all can be done on the train… provided there isn’t a snoring lady in the car. Seriously people, train etiquette, learn it.
On the subject, I also need to address one of my biggest pet peeves about commuting.
Headphones—and this is true on airplanes as well. Please, I do not want to hear what you are listening to on your iPods. I believe these magical ear buds were invented to avoid disturbing others around you. However, there are some individuals that are not aware of this concept. And it makes me enraged—enraged inside only though, because I respect the quiet car.
Despite this downfall of commuting (and the occasional delay that always seems to happen when you are in a hurry), the Metra is a great way to travel. Some would even say it’s “The way to really fly.”
Don’t let a commute discourage you from taking a job. Here at Starcom, I was nervous at first because it seemed like all the interns were living downtown, going out for happy hour, and walking 10 minutes to work. They were the cool kids and I was the one running (literally running) to make the 5:15pm train everyday.
But in reality, not all interns live downtown. There are even associates that still live at home and have to commute. I can definitely say that I have saved a ton of money by living at home, but I’ve also gained an experience that I will remember forever.
One day maybe we will be able to live downtown, and wake up two hours later. But for now, commuting on the train is a great alternative. Don’t be intimidated by the thought of it all. Always keep the little schedule booklets in your bag too. Take it from me (missed my train this morning) you never know when you will need them.
Commuting is an unknown territory that becomes all too familiar after a few weeks of doing it. The conductors start to recognize you and the people in your car (if you’re like me and sit in the same one everyday) start to smile at you when you pass by. It’s almost like a new little community of friends. And you can all commiserate together about the delays, the broken AC, or the walk over to work in the sweltering heat.
My dad reminded me that some people do this for forty years. Commuting is like second nature to them and they don’t even think twice about it. And if I can do it for one summer, so can you.
In the end, I think I’m even going to miss it—everything except the loud people in the quiet car.
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