Thursday, May 29, 2008

A NORMAL CITYBUS RIDE (not so normal)





A city bus ride is an experience that you just cant find on a train. Yes the trains do have those black guys singing for money all day going from cart to cart but a city bus is got its style.It usually depends on what time of day your ride is that makes it an experience. If I go on at 9:oo AM it would usually be so crowded that I wouldn't have enough room to even fit on the bus. If I go at 12:oo PM it would be empty and the ride much quicker. The evening is where the fun is. The entertainment comes from the bus driver themselves. There are those bus drivers that don't care if the person has the money or not and lets them on. Then there are those that are new bus drivers, they have to say hi to everyone with a big smile on their face and wont move the bus until every single last person is behind the white line, cant come on the bus if you're 5 cents too short. It seems like they are taught before driving the bus that everyone has to be treated this way, and listen to the sign written on top of every bus, you know the ones that have the NO in big letters and say eating, drinking, music playing, standing in front of white line, etc.

They are the funniest when someone tries to sneak on through the back. I was once on a bus and there was a new driver meaning I was going to come home late. She listened to all the rules. She even made people get up for the elderly in seats not designated to get up for them. Then a kid tried sneaking on through the back. We waited twenty minutes (read very slowly) for the kid to come around put in the metro card get behind the white line on a crowded bus (you can stop reading slowly) Then she got up and screamed "people we are not moving this bus until everyone is behind the white line". A normal bus ride is between 15-20 minutes this one was a whopping 50 minute ride I could have walked faster...........why didn't I?

In the morning sometimes there is a preacher lady who tries to convert people I had her once or twice. She says "my rilligion is da best becawse my rilligion said so" I was going to scream out " hey I came on the city bus for a ride not a sermon" but my friend was there and I would really embarrass myself and I didn't want to argue with my stop coming up. She went on to say that Yeshka atoned for our sins and that it was the "ABC" of everything. Then she starts listing off from A-Z words that reflect him. I got off when she was in the middle, some were pretty funny how she connected it to him. It was a weired experience.

Many times I use the city bus to relax and look out the window unless I have something interesting to do or who to speak to. (I thought about this post on a city bus). The seating on the bus is a big deal. Many people wont sit next to someone instead they leave a seat in the middle open. Then there are those two seaters and they are hard to get out of when you are on the inside of one and you have to squish your way out and maybe your shoe comes off revealing you're socks or stockings. Soon someone will ban sitting in those seats because of that. Well those types of seats are how you define people. If someone Is alone in one of them and sits on the outer side that wont let anyone get in they are probably mean and you don't want to sit next to them unless they move over by them seeing that you want to sit, then go right ahead its okay.

When I sit in one I usually sit on the inner side and if anyone needs a place to sit next to someone I am usually first one they choose (see previous post for why) and the Black guys in the back usually never get sat next to. Story time again I was one the city bus about 3:00 and it was crowded. When its crowded you could assume that there is a gang in the back and no one wants to sit next to them this bus had one. A group of kids from a Yeshiva got on and sat pretty close to them (not to close) Then there was a fat lady next to them (I am guessing she came before). The gang said some racial comments to the kids and then the fat lady said shut up I have a headache. So now she was the target they started making fun of her that shes fat, and she says I lost 50 pounds so far. They laugh and say Imagine how fat you used to be and they start making sizes with their hands. The lady screams I have a black boyfriend I am not a racist (I don't know what made her say that) She takes her bottle she had and chucked it at them it ended up hitting one of the kids from yeshiva on the bus. The leader of the group gets up and punches her in the face. Then she starts cursing you little !@#!@@# and how dare you $%&$ blank @%$##. The bus driver calls 911 and now I have to get off the bus since the cops need to question the bus driver. The gang was arrested, the lady was telling the cops what happened and how she was innocent.

A city bus is a great experience (and a great post).

6 people gave their 2 cents:

Jewish Side of Babysitter said...

I never noticed bus drivers being new or not. But yea I had a lot of experience with bus drivers. If you go the same time every morning you sometimes get the same driver, even the same passengers sometimes. Then you know if your late, if you see their not on the bus, you know you missed it.
They actually do have lots of rules they have to enforce, but some are "nice" and don't. Like if someone forgot to press stop, and the bus driver goes past the stop, they will tell the bus driver to stop, really he is not allowed to stop between stops, but sometimes they do anyways.
Actually in HS when there were crowded buses the bus driver would tell us to go through the back door because there is room in the back.
I never sit in those 2 seaters because of that reason. I always go straight to the back, because I got used to it when the bus driver in the morning would say move to the back or else it won't move. So instead of being told to move to the back, I move first. Plus the back is usually the most empty so it works out good.
wow, what a story, that is scary, I wouldn't want to be near them when that happens. Something like that happened when I was on the bus and I didn't want to take chances so when the bus driver stopped the bus to go to them, I went off the bus and walked the rest of the way.

Mikeinmidwood said...

I thought the gang might pull out a knife and some old lady was scared saying "someone do something"
I ended up walking the rest of the way too.

Jacob Da Jew said...

I hate public transportation , I usually bike ride to work.

Lion of Zion said...

i love trains. but i hate buses and haven't been on one in years

"She even made people get up for the elderly in seats not designated to get up for them."

what's wrong with that?

Mikeinmidwood said...

Lion of zion

the fact is that it was more like it didnt need to be done. People gave the seats up anyway and the bus driver made a big deal out of it. More than that I dont know hope I answered your question.

MAK said...

All I can say is: thank g-d I never had to take buses. I've done it a couple of times in NY, and once in Miami. Trouble with Miami is; all the wierdos take the buses. That, and they are NEVER on time. They come about once every hour, and they usually come late. I am so glad that I am my own transportation!