"Be on Time Chronicles" 7/25/19

I don't want to give the impression that every Metro Access ride is terrible.

I tend to blog about the bad ones because they stand out.
They are upsetting, frustrating, often caused by poor scheduling and not through the fault of the driver.

Even when a ride is bad, I try to find some humor in the situation.

I haven't told the story of what happened last Thursday.

But before I do, I'll talk about this morning's ride.

I stumbled out to the van, barely ready and still feeling half asleep. I was also having allergy issues, and had to constantly wipe my eyes and nose (TMI?)

But the driver was so entertaining that I soon pepped up and was giggling most of the day to work.

I don't know if he was high on life, or had ingested a lot of coffee, but he was chattering away on a variety of topics.

Mainly he was talking about the possibility of life on other planets.
What the aliens might look like, and how they would react to humans.

We also talked about personal phobias - like heights - and shaking our heads at people who do crazy things like take selfies at the edge of cliffs and engage with wild animals and then have to run for their lives.

He told the story of encountering a bobcat (yes, a real one) when he was picking up a passenger at an apartment complex off of Far West Blvd. I have heard on the news about a bobcat in that area, so I believe he's telling the truth that he saw one, although parts of the tale have been embellished, as you will soon see.

Regardless, he was SO funny telling the story!
"I had a big ole' bobcat wrapping itself around my feet, and then a Bambi wandered up to me, and asked, "Yo, you know you got a bobcat hangin' 'round yo feet?"

He said, "If Metro wants me to quit, they will send me back to that address. 'Cause I ain't goin'. Maybe I'd go during daylight, when I can see what's comin' at me. But I ain't goin' at no six a.m. ever again. Uh-uh. No way. I value my life. They can find someone else to do that."

I enjoyed the ride, and it felt good to arrive at work in a better frame of mind than when I entered the vehicle. 

librarianintx

"Be on Time Chronicles" 7/23/19

My first time blogging a ride as it's happening.

I'm doing this to keep myself sane.

Non-Austin peeps, take a nap.
This won't make sense.

ATX in the house?
Okay.

I got picked up from the HEB at Parmer & I35. I always shop there. Because I live ONE mile from there.

We are heading east on Parmer. I tell the driver, "Oh that's my street" as he's passing it.

He says, "I have another pick up."

Okay, I think. That's happened before.
Ten minutes maybe.

A pick up, and then I'll go home.

Uh-huh.

Not even close.

The pick up was on Dessau.

We dropped the guy off at the Embassy Suites on 290!

Yeah, I know. Utterly ridiculous!

But wait, it gets better.

Their reasoning, such as it was, was made clear when the driver clarified where he was taking me.

HE WAS TAKING ME BACK TO WORK DOWNTOWN!!!

I'm going back to work?
With groceries?
At 5 in the afternoon?
After I told the driver that I live a mile from the grocery store?
Does this make sense to anyone?

I could not make this shit up if I tried.

I got picked up from HEB at 5:07 pm.

I will likely get home about 6:15.

Oh, and my pick up from work was 2:30. I arrived at HEB at 4:15.

Frustrating beyond belief.

Three and a half hours for a trip to the grocery store. Because of their mistake.
If the driver had told me where he was taking me I could have MAYBE kept myself from having to ride around for this past HOUR!

Maddening

librarianintx

"Be on Time Chronicles" 7/16/19

Something interesting and helpful happened this morning.

My driver knocked on my door at 6:40. My ride window opens at 6:45. I was scurrying around as usual, packing my lunch bag, putting on my work badge and jacket, etc. I opened the door, expecting him to say he knew he was early but he wanted me to know that he was there whenever I was ready. But he said something different.

"The guy we are picking up goes to a place that doesn't open until 8 am. So how about if you come out at the end of your window - around 7:15. That way we won't have to sit and wait for the place to open."

Sweet! I thought I had five minutes to finish getting ready. Now I had THIRTY FIVE minutes to do whatever I wanted. I don't know that this has ever happened in the two plus decades that I have been riding Metro Access.

I could have read, or looked at Facebook, but I decided to get a few chores done. I got my laundry ready for this afternoon. I put yesterday's clean laundry away. I readied work attire for tomorrow and Thursday. I caught up on my daily journal. All things I won't have to do when I get home. I could have had time for a proper breakfast, but I didn't do that.

It was so nice of the driver to give me that extra time, and not make me wait in the van.

I still had a long ride. I didn't get to work until 8:20. But it felt good to get a few chores done, and not feel like I was sitting around wasting time because of a poor schedule.

librarianintx

"Be on Time Chronicles" 7/11/19

It's something that happens to everyone at times in their life.
I'm very fortunate that I haven't faced this situation in years.

I overslept this morning.

My first alarm goes off at 5:40 a.m.
The second alarm is supposed to chime at 5:45.
I either didn't set the second alarm, or I somehow turned it off during the night.

I woke up at 6:13.
My ride window opens at 6:45.

So I had to assess the situation very quickly while still half asleep.
Do I try to make it?
Do I decide to take my time and pay for a ride share to work?
Do I say forget it and take the day off?

I chose to make a run for it.

Not showering was not an option.
I could not go to work with bed head and a bed body.
I took the quickest shower known to man, including an incredibly fast hair wash.

Thank goodness I had clothes and jewelry ready in the bathroom.
All I needed to do was find shoes.

I walked out the door at 6:45, feeling thankful and relatively put together.

The vehicle was parked outside.

Whew! I did it!
It wasn't a pleasant experience, but I'm glad I made it.

Hopefully this won't happen again for awhile.
But I survived it. 

librarianintx

"Be on Time Chronicles" 7/3/19

Over the years of riding Metro Access, I have fellow passengers that I journey with frequently. Some people I see every week; then I don't see them for months at a time.

This morning I rode with Maria (not her real name). Maria is one of those frequent / infrequent fellow riders. For awhile we were riding together every Wednesday. Then I didn't see her for a few months.

We rode together this morning. And she had big news to share. She is moving to Illinois at the end of the month. I saw a "for sale" sign in front of her house when we pulled up.

Maria is blind and has an intellectual disability. Trips with her are never dull. She asks questions at a rapid fire pace that run the gamut of topics. Amid the questions she will give you a glimpse into her life. I know a few facts about her. Her family is from Illinois. Her mother died a number of years ago. She lived with her father until he passed away about two years ago. Now she lives with her brother. She has another brother who lives in another state. The second brother got married a few months ago.

Here is a typical "conversation" with Maria. She likes to ask questions, but she doesn't always like to answer them. She also enjoys interjecting some exclamations and Spanish into the "conversations."

"Do you like the Hallmark channel?"
"Do you like ravioli? How do you cook ravioli?"
"My mom died."
"Do you like Valentine's Day?"
"There's snow sometimes in Illinois."
"BOO!"
"What year were you born?"
"Do you like mosquitoes?"
"Como estas?"
"I have a fan in my room."
"Do you like tamales?"
"I love you."

And the questions keep coming. Sometimes she'll pause in the stream to mutter to herself. If we stop to pick up or drop off other people, she will get antsy.

"Are we going yet?"
"Are we ready to leave?"
"Have to wait, not ready to go yet."

Today I asked her about her impending move, and she responded. We had an actual conversation. I told her she will be missed at the day programs she attends.

I will miss talking to Maria.
I hope she likes living in Illinois.

librarianintx