My bus ride yesterday morning

For the past few weeks, every Thursday morning I have been on the paratransit bus with a young woman who is blind and mentally challenged. I have been a passenger with her several times over the years. She talks a lot, to the driver and to herself.

Yesterday morning she kept talking about her gynecological visit. She mentioned having a pap smear several times. She also cursed a few times. I have never heard her say dirty words before. Her swearing and talking about her pap smear didn't seem to have a connection. She wasn't cursing about her pap smear. Then she would suddenly let out a loud shriek. Again, the shrieking apparently didn't have anything to do with the gynecology experience. She was simply shrieking.

I am unnerved by sudden, loud noises. And I did not want to hear about pap smears at seven o'clock in the morning. I don't ever want to think about pap smears: mine, her's, or anyone's.

Such is life when you ride the paratransit service. You don't know who you are going to ride with, or how they are going to behave. You have no control over the route, the time, who your driver is, or your fellow passengers. It is a SHARED RIDE SERVICE. I have ridden with incessant talkers; movers and shakers; complainers; terrible singers; foul mouthed, racist old ladies; and people who have peed and pooped on themselves. I have also had the pleasure to ride with many sweet, intelligent, hardworking, caring, funny, happy individuals. I have met a few people that have lived in Austin for decades, and offer memories and stories about the little town that has burgeoned into a major metropolis. I have seen some of the grandest homes in Austin, and some of the seediest apartment complexes. I have enjoyed the hilltop views around Loop 360, witnessed the continued gentrification of the East Side, and felt the desperation of the 7th Street ARCH.

It's not a great situation. But I get where I need to go, and I usually get there on time. I can choose to be upset about the downsides of paratransit, or I can find the humor, the humanity, and the history in what I experience. Most days I opt for the latter.

librarianintx