Two Cute Girls & Voting

Thursday night, July 15th, I went to the back of the bus and to my surprise there were two girls one was three and one four years old. They were both quite pleasant. I asked M. if they belonged to her but she said their mother was at the front of the bus. They were playing with some bus tickets and trying to give them away as if they were going to perform a card trick. I took one and gave it to the other girl at which point I was promptly scolded and told, "that's my ticket". What do I know. Then the fun part came up. "Smell my feet" they both said and I promptly said nope to which they laughed and would continue to do so for a while. I explained that young ladies should keep their legs down and their dresses down but that didn't matter. I heard the mother at the front of the bus yell to the girls to put their feet down to which they obeyed. M. made a comment to the younger girl that she liked her sandals and the older girl said that they were hers and wanted to trade footwear with the girl. We tried to figure out if they were sisters but I didn't think that they were. Then a while later the older girl was saying that her feet hurt and that she wanted a bandage for her sore. Sure enough she had a raw spot at the back of her heel where the shoe rubs. I thought I had a Band-Aid in my bag but S. beat me to it and we put it on her. Now the younger girl said her had a sore foot and wanted a bandage so M. proceeded to put it on her. Monkey see, monkey do I guess. It was an entirely enjoyable ride.
One of the other regular riders asked if we were all going to vote in August because the Macomb County Commissioners wants to opt out of SMART bus service for Macomb. I told her that I was indeed going to vote. She also said we should contact our commissioners to let them know that it is a vital service and to not vote to opt out of the service. I really don't know where some of the commissioners come up with these harebrained ideas. This is a vital service for all of Macomb County and if they vote to take it away they are once again screwing the little guy. If in fact they feel that it needs to be overhauled in any way they should get involved with SMART to figure it out. Isn't that why we have elected officials to solve problems and not create problems.
Bus rides = entertainment

The Sniffer...

I don't have allegies, and generally I don't get colds easily. That being said, why do people just sit and snort/sniff instead of just blowing their nose? I guess I can understand allergies, but I really wanted to clock this fella who sat next to me this morning. Every 5 seconds...sniff...sniff...sniff. I'm very grateful that I don't have allergies...

Molested on the Bus!!

In all my years of riding the bus, I have never been groped. But I was last night. By a sly, stealthy little creature, disguised as an innocent little baby.

We picked up a group of folks around 8 mile or so. They boarded the bus, and among them was an older lady shuffling two older girls and the aforementioned mischevious little imp, maybe 18 months.

I normally doze on the bus, so I closed my eyes and went back to sleep. I begin feeling a pawing at my side, proceeding up to my left breast. I opened my eyes and gave him a "you stop that" sort of stare, which, not surprisely, did not faze him at all. Grandma was chiding him, saying, "Stop that, you don't know that lady, and she doesn't need you harassing her." She ended the conversation by pinning his arms to his side as best she could. I went back to sleep.

All of a sudden, my bra strap is yanked down! What a grip this tyke had! He had a great big smile on his face when my eyes flew open. "Guh!!" he said. "NO!" I said, pulling up my strap. Grandma was horrified, apologizing over and over. I poked him in the nose, and said, "You are going to be the bane of your Grandma!" Fortunately by this time the bus was making the Michigan Left onto south-bound Gratiot at the mall, and I could depart. But it made for an interesting ride!

A Good Laugh

Sometimes it's nice to talk to the regular riders you've known for a long time and have a great laugh. Usually the topic meanders from the original topic but we all manage to follow along. Today two of us crazy/fun people were cracking each other up over the name of a sporting goods store chain - Dicks. You can well imagine how off color we became. My favorite thing to observe on the bus is a person who is stuck close by and without dipping into our conversation manage to smirk. Good times.
bus rides = entertainment.

Headphones

I find that since I carry my MP3 player with me on the bus I'm using it as a kind of crutch. What I mean is that I'd rather listen to the radio or music than to talk to people. In a way I think it's kind of sad of me to purposefully avoid human vocal contact but some days I just want to listen in my own little world. The fact that I'm realizing this recent behavior is good in that I can think about it the next time I reach for the electronic device. I could be missing out on some interesting writing material as well. Something to think about though.
bus rides = entertainment.

Loudest Bus Award

This morning's bus ride in to Detroit was giving me a headache due to the fact that the brakes needed some work as well as something to do with the transmission or drive shaft. The bus was so loud I actually thought we were going to break down. Usually when there is a major problem with the bus you hear an alarm go off at the front. I've seen bus drivers just continue to drive on while it's going off and a few times the bus will actually be stuck for a bit at a stop due to a stall and the driver will have to restart the bus. Well this morning's bus driver got a lemon of a bus for his route, that's all I can say. Luckily I only had to endure the din for twenty minutes. I'm sure every bus needs to be inspected everyday for safety but I wonder what the maintenance schedule at the bus yard is like. It's probably rife with red-tape and paperwork. For me it's still the most economical way to get to work, (considering gas, parking, maintenance, & time) and it's better for the environment with less cars on the road. So you may want to consider the bus if you don't already take it. People tend to take advantage of not having to concentrate on driving. Some people read, some women apply makeup, some knit or crochet, some work on laptops, some play games, watch video or listen to the news with thier headphones on and feel productive.
bus rides = entertainment

Feed the Birds

All I could think of was the song from Mary Poppins, "Feed The Birds", as I was waiting for the bus next to the City-County Building this afternoon. I had to chuckle because an old lady was feeding pigeons from her cart in the middle of all the folks waiting for the bus and walking by on the sidewalk. Apparently those people are more patient and tolerant than I would be with lots of pigeons scrambling about for the bread. As I was watching the show with a smile and a chuckle a lady a few feet away caught my eye and she was smiling as well. Life is full of surprises, chuckles and bird lovers.
bus rides = entertainment