Saturday, September 02, 2006

Let's ride

Sometimes people ask me how to ride the bus. I have to admit, I am pretty good at having exact change, and it can be confusing for a first-time rider. The change slot on Baltimore buses isn't where I want it to be. Then, sometimes the stop-requesting mechanism is broken, and if no one more aggressive than you wants your stop, you have to shout, "Next stop, please" in front of all the bus people, who are totally going to make fun of your shouting style once you get off.

But on any given Baltimore City bus with at least a smattering of riders, there is probably at least one person who is talking to -- sometimes screaming at -- no one. Life is not generally easy for this person. Yet, this person somehow gets it together enough to board, ride and exit the bus at the proper time and in the proper manner.

Let this person be an inspiration to you.

The book part of this is something I saw a few weeks ago at Atomic Books: How to Live Well Without Owning a Car.

I appreciate the spirit of the book, and the numbers on the cost of car ownership are persuasive, but I'm not sure a book is necessary. If it helps people realize that it's not so hard to live without a car, then a common-sense book isn't a bad thing.

No comments: