Train dreams and bus wishes

My mass transit life is on a downward spiral.

In May I started taking public transporation to work when I could. And back then I could fairly often -- two to three days a week. It was our "quiet" time when it's possible to leave right on time, or even a few minutes early, to catch the bus. I was leaving traffic and congestion behind and living the life.

But lately my public transporation commitment has been tested. We've gotten busier at work and I've started twice-weekly rugby practices, which I need to drive to. So now I'm down to taking public transportation just one day a week.

It would be more convenient to drive every day but I'm trying to stick to one day a week. For one, I want to save on gas. Even with prices back to what I was paying in May, it still ain't cheap. But my real motivation is to do more than just talk the talk of an environmentalist. It'll get harder again as summer fades and it gets darker sooner. I think it should still be safe but I have a feeling I won't be quite as carefree (and by that I mean zoned out reading the paper or listening to the shows I've podcasted) going through Watts and Compton on my way home.

The other day at the bar after rugby practice, one of my teammates mentioned that she carpools to work in Glendale. She lives in Long Beach too and I know she's been carpooling for years, way before it became cool because of global warming/high gas prices. She said she could take the train but it would take way too long. How long, I asked. Two hours. Man I felt like the uncool kid -- why was I putting up with these long trips? And this was a day after I'd worked late with a student and then ended up taking the train with her and giving her a ride home to San Pedro from where my car was parked at a Blue Line station. That meant I wasn't home to Long Beach until 9 p.m. My teammate is probably right that carpooling is better, but I don't think I can carpool since I wouldn't have as much flexibiltiy. But maybe I should keep an open mind. I used to say that taking public transporation wasn't an option because my office isn't near a rail line stop, but I've proven myself wrong. Well, kind of.

I wish LA had a better public transportation system so it was faster and easier to get around. Having to transfer from a fairly fast rail line to a bus really slows things down. And even with my office moving later this year to a slightly closer location, it'll still take just as long (and require two stinkin' transfers). I was asked today by someone why I lived so far from where I work. I told him I loved living in Long Beach. I've said that for four years and it's still true, but I'm definitely tired of driving to work and, at the moment, of my alternative.

One less paper cup on the way to the landfill ... almost

What inspired me to start this blog was coming back from Coffee Bean with a funny story about environmentalism gone awry.

At Christmas one of the former students at my work gave the editors Thomas Kinkade gift baskets with a mug, tea and sugar swizzle stick. Say what you will about whether mass produced art is really art, these mugs were great. Tall and thin, they were the perfect size for an experiment I'd been wanting to try.

One day I took my mug and walked next door to The Coffee Bean, where I treat myself to a latte about once a week. At the counter I told the girl, "Small mocha latte, half powder. And can you put it in my mug?" The young girl behind the counter looked a little confused, but said OK. My chest was bursting with pride. "I'm doing good for the environment," I thought. Then I watched in horror as they made my latte in a paper cup and then proceeded to pour the drink into my mug and THROW THE CUP AWAY. When I explained to them that I had wanted to save them from having to use a paper cup (which isn't recyclable), they claimed that the mug was too big to fit under their machine (hogwash! It's shorter than the commuter mugs they sell). I couldn't wait to run back upstairs to my office and tell my coworkers about my failed attempt and laugh at the idiocy of these alleged baristas. (And on top of it all, the commuter cup discount is only 10 cents. I'd been all ready for my green plan to be a bargain to boot.)

I'm happy to report that things are better now. The second time I tried, I held up my mug and said in a slow and clear voice, "I'd like you to make it IN my mug." And then the barista, one of the competent ones, made it in my mug just fine. Since then I've had no mix-ups. And last time I was there I discovered BYOM had gone from "secret" menu to mainstream. There on the drink blackboard was a note saying drinks made in commuter mugs get .10 cents off.

Half the time I forget to grab the mug when I go on my coffee run, but when I do remember I feel good about not killing a tree for a cup with a life span of a few hours. I just have to walk slowly so I don't spill coffee all over myself on the way back to my office.

The 720

Sometimes when I'm on the bus and the minutes are ticking ever more quickly toward 9 a.m., I wonder if there's a faster way to get to work using mass transit than my current route of the Blue Line and 16 bus. I chose the route because of it's simplicity (hey, just one transfer!). The rail portion isn't so bad but the mere seven-mile bus ride that takes 35 minutes slows things down. I also wouldn't mind incorporating more walking since that's one of the benefits to using public transportation, but with 30 miles to go morning and evening, that has the potential to really slow things down.

One alternative route is taking the 720, the Rapid bus that runs along Wilshire. On a bit of a lark, I decided to try it yesterday after work. I left the office and didn't feel a bit of remorse as I headed off to Wilshire and La Brea, even when two 16 buses passed me. I was enjoying my .8-mile walk through the neighborhood just south of my office.

Google maps, with it's awesome new feature of showing walking routes, said it would take me 17 minutes. I got to the Rapid stop in 15 -- take that Google maps! There were about a dozen people waiting in the hot sun. A fancy schmancy electronic sign told me a bus was coming in three minutes. The bus came but then, in classic bus horror-story fashion, it passed right on by. I looked at the sign again and saw I had five more minutes to kill until the next bus. It was about this time that my walking high wore off. I stared across the street at a building with a pilates studio, thinking I could be there instead of wasting time on this street corner, one more missed bus away from becoming one of those sweaty bus people.

The next bus stopped and we all piled on. Some people jumped on through the rear doors. I used the front door since it was my first time on a Rapid bus and didn't know if that was against the rules.

That worked out because I had the best view on the bus. I stood next to the bus driver and got to watch the street ahead through the giant windshield. I felt like a passenger in a car since we barely made stops (just one at Crenshaw). It was the closest feeling to driving I've had on a bus, even with standing, my foot touching someone else's foot and my back lightly caressing the person behind me (but he was cute so that was OK).

I got off at Western and Wilshire, bolted for the Red Line station and waited just a few minutes before the train pulled away. Eight minutes later I was back on familiar ground, the downtown 7th Street Metro Station. I got off the train and looked at my watch. I had missed the 6:46 p.m. Blue Line train by a minute. One damn minute! If only that first 720 had stopped.

I got back to Long Beach at 7:33, pretty much the same arrival time as my old route. So in theory this walk-bus-train-train route would be faster if I could catch the 720 right away and didn't have to wait much for the trains, but lets get real folks.

I might take this route again on a day I feel like walking. Maybe I'll take the 720 all the way downtown. That's one less transfer. Ooh, maybe that's my "miracle" route. I can keep dreaming, can't I?