I’m a graduate student at Antioch University in Seattle, and have been working on campus since my job was cut last November. I take the bus to campus, both to work and for my classes, and every morning there’s an elder guy who sits in one of the front row seats along one side of the bus (the seats where folks who sit need to,because they can’t move around so well…). He often gives origami paper folded cranes to passengers on the bus who he sees. It’s such a blessing to watch him, he seems to get a lot of pleasure out of simply giving away the paper cranes that he makes to anyone. Okay, mostly that’s women, however I really appreciate what he teaches us about giving with no ulterior motive in mind!

Joyce

yea for haikus! how fun!
Alice

I see you zoom by
The leaves swirling in your wake
Round and round you go

Everyone write a haiku! If you’re not familiar, you want 3 lines. 5 syllables in the first line, 7 in the second, and 5 again in the third.

You’re not allowed to make fun of mine unless you write your own…

I find it disappointing that some larger cities such as Tampa and Detroit don’t have the infrastructure in place to support a successful public transit.

I’ve been to Chicago and New York a few times and have had nothing but great experiences.

Whenever I’m downtown Detroit, riding the “People Mover,” I’m always pleased with the way it operates, but I feel that it’s just not enough.

Again, I’m sorry about your experience. Thanks for sharing.

I live in a small rural town, a ‘bedroom community’ to a larger city about 40 miles away. There are very few jobs in my hometown, so most everyone commutes. Unfortunately I hate to think of the impact this all has on the environment. Sure, we could move to the larger city, but the town we live in has little to no crime, a great school and everyone knows your name. I dream of the day when hybrid cars become affordable and feasable for everyone.

As for a bus story, last summer I tagged along with my husband on one of his business conferences to Tampa Florida. I got suggestions for a bead shop there from a bead forum member and was eager to visit the place. The hotel bellhop said it would be about a $20 ride there. Turns out it was $50 one way. That meant $100 for a round-trip cab ride coming out of my very small bead budget. A shopper at the bead store suggested I take the city bus back, which was much cheaper. The bus was dirty and stunk of body odor, and a woman with open sores all over her skin sat next to me. We went through several slum areas and were dumped off in a vacant parking lot where I was left on my own to try and figure out the Tampa transit system and which connecting bus would get me back to my hotel. After getting on the wrong bus I finally found the correct one, and was taken through more slum areas, and then left off in a bad area three blocks from where I could reach the trolly that would finally get me back somewhat close to my hotel. I arrived back at the hotel four hours later hot,thirsty, weary, shaking with hunger, frustrated, and holding a tiny sack of beads that had-in the end-cost me nearly $80.

Alice