#something

Totally forgot to look at the number today - and I was doing so well. Raining this morning, so I'll blame it on that. Everyone in Arizona blames the rain.

A couple of interesting discussions today. Bill showed me two articles in the Arizona Republic about love on the bus. Today is Valentine's Day and the media panders to it tremendously. I guess retailers make huge profits on 2/14, but it seems like a huge Day of Guilt - right up there with Mother's Day. I always feel bad for recently widowed or divorced people who face the bombardment of "love" as February 14 approaches. Greed blinds us to the plight of others.

The other discussion, and focus of today's image, is the Arizona State University Visitor's Center. Valley National Bank built it in 1962 and ASU later purchased it. A gold, geodesic dome, it was much hated and maligned by ASU's newish president. Apparently he and his New York imports are appalled by the architecture on ASU's campus. Coming from Columbia University in NYC, they want old buildings and ivy. Since Arizona didn't become a state until 1912 and ASU didn't become a university until 1958, seems difficult to expect 200-year-old buildings and . . . ivy in the desert? Needless to say, the building was recently razed; however, rumor has it the dome survived and is stored somewhere on ASU's campus. Dave suggested the dome be used to shade a large, outdoor gathering area and Mark thought it could be situated over ASU's football arena, Sun Devil Stadium. Outstanding suggestions by all - too bad university presidents don't read bus blogs.

#4119

Staying late at work tonight, so went in late this morning. Caught the 66 at 10:30am and - surprise, surprise - the driver was our old best driver, Steve! I said good morning, but was fumbling with my bag and pass and general half-blind clumsiness and didn't really get a good look and know it was him at first. Once sitting and situated, I realized his profile looked familiar and greeted him properly when I got off. Wonder if he's back on the 66 full-time? If so, and the route runs as usual, he should be at the wheel of the 6am66 - tomorrow will tell.

A very young couple got on with a baby, maybe a year old, and the baby was a screamer. Not crying, just one of those little bodies that screeches loudly and abruptly, like animals in a zoo. The child sat on the seat between them and I finally decided the screams erupted to gain attention. The mother ignored the baby as she became engrossed in conversation with another young woman who boarded after the couple. The girls/women seemed to know each other from the past and their discussion contained lots of expletives, each one prefaced with the word "like". The father "controlled" the child, but never said a word to him/her. I speak more to my cat than this man did to the baby. I felt bad for the child as his/her future appears dim with learned behavior from this couple. A bit later, a man got on carrying a baby, about the same size and age as the first one. This man held the baby on his lap and talked to him. The little boy remained quiet and calm throughout the ride. As the bus rounded the curve next to Gammage auditorium, the father held the boy up and showed him the building. A striking structure designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, it looks like a giant birthday cake and it caught the child's attention. Unlike the young couple, this man nurtured his child. Got to see the best and worst parenting practices on today's ride.

I took a quick photo of the bus stop signs, looking west on Guadalupe. Been awhile since I spent daylight time at the stop.

#4114

Another icy day on the bus. Might have to move to the back bench seat and grab some heat from the engine. I don't like that seat - a bit too throne-like, but the cold is miserable.

An interesting discussion day on the 6am66. I asked Bill what he planned to do after retirement and he mentioned "Habitat for Humanity". He indicated prior experience with the group and said it is a satisfying means of public service. The discussion then moved on to various places and ways to provide public service in the Phoenix area. Mark has taken his children to St. Vincent de Paul to work on a food serving line and Bill has participated in similar activities. This year at Christmas I did something I have wanted to do for a long time and my eye surgery and immobility provided the perfect impetus. In lieu of purchased gifts, I made donations to several non-profit organizations. It was so nice and felt so good to put money toward something helpful. Now started, I intend to continue the tradition.

It's nice to ride the bus, especially with such good and caring people.

#4109

Once again our regular crew filled the BTA. I realized that after May, I might be the lone regular to occupy that exalted space. Bill retires at the end of February and Mark and Dave graduate in May. My life plans look pretty static right now, so I'll be left alone to carry on. Can a Brain Trust exist with only one brain? Think about that one.

Don't know what's up with the weather and the buses. We've enjoyed 80+ degree days lately and the buses aren't acclimatizing. Yesterday, on the ride home, the bus heater blasted us with warm air waves. The outside temperature was 83 and it must have been 183 inside the bus. This morning, the outside temperature was 53 (that's cold with only 12% humidity) and the bus air conditioner sent shivering waves of cold throughout the craft. In the cold mornings, waiting at the bus stop, I look forward to the warmth of the bus. It wraps around me like a blanket and keeps me snug and safe. Today, though, my protective cover was missing. Where was this air conditioning yesterday afternoon? Is bus interior climate control a challenging concept? I want the drivers to be comfortable - our lives and timely arrival depend on their ability to function well. However, I don't want to die of hypothermia in the process. Seems like a no win situation - death by uncomfortable driver or over air conditioning. It's always something.

#4109

Wonder how they decide which bus goes on which route? While I want to believe in a highly technical, logical decision process, I bet it's totally random. It could be a "release the hounds" thing where the drivers race to get their bus of choice. Probably not.

Not much discussion in the BTA - the Suns loss and the crazy lady astronaut's 1,000 mile love triangle trip. The whole story makes space travel much less appealing if that's what it does to one's gray cells. Think I'll stick with the 6am66.

Our new driver is Hispanic/Mexican/Latino - don't know what word is best, so HML must do. Since he started driving our bus, the number of HML passengers has increased; as if an underground network lets people know which bus route contains a Spanish-speaking driver. It makes no sense since the chosen route should coincide with destination; however, the 6am66 gets more HML riders every day. Probably just coincidence.

Today a young man with a bicycle wanted on the bus, but the bike rack was full. The driver had the guy bring his bike into the bus where he held it until one of the other bicyclists got off and space in the rack opened up. It was a nice gesture by the driver.

#4108

Aaaaah, Friday - best day of the week, no doubt. Once again, Dave missed the 6am66. Bill, Mark and I filled the BTA with food talk. Bill said Uno's has great French onion soup and Mark advised he makes the best FOS. The conversation stirred my taste buds and I now embark on a quest to consume some FOS today. One never knows where bus talk will lead.

I must take time to ponder last night's ride home on the 81 southbound. A woman flew onto the bus, breathless and carrying on about missing the #?? and so she was just going to take the 81S, blah, blah, blah. She sat down and continued to talk loudly to the driver. She kept it up as we pulled away and got louder, as though to drown out the noise of the moving bus. We kept going and she kept talking. Shortly, a man sitting across the aisle from her got up and moved to the back of the bus. I understood his move but felt the gesture was lost on this woman who embodied "oblivious".

Eventually, she got up and stood in the aisle near the front door. She talked and talked and talked. She didn't appear angry, just a talker and a loud talker, at that. She made it difficult for people getting on to pass by and yet the driver never said anything to her. He would make an occasional comment and that just kept her going. With passenger pick-up and drop-off, route timing and the usual driving challenges in Tempe traffic, I don't know how the driver stayed on top of his duties while this woman yammered away.

Finally she got off, introducing herself and shaking the driver's hand as she departed. I don't know whether we were in potential peril from the distraction she posed or if this driver proved that we humans absolutely can multi-task, contrary to all the research that says we can't. I just don't know . . .

#4108

A lovely full moon provided visual extras for the Guadalupe crossing this morning. The clouds broke up enough for the celestial body to perform its streetlight act. Well done, moon.

Dave failed to make an appearance today but Bill and Mark and I kept the BTA chat alive. Somehow we ended up in a comparative religion discourse - started with a movie that Bill saw in his church. I absolutely don't remember the movie's topic, but it prompted the discussion that ensued. Former altar boy Mark gave insight into the Romans while I tossed some Anglican info into the mix. Bill never referenced his particular flavor of denomination, but we do know they show movies! Mark said Mel Gibson follows the practices of the extremist RC sect, Opus Dei, depicted in "The DaVinci Code" - a self-flagellating, excessively penitent group. If that's what Hollywood fame and fortune creates, I must revisit my plan to become a major star. Amazing what is talked about on the bus, eh? The current crop of semi-regular riders is a pretty morose bunch, making BTA chat all the more crucial for a good start to the day.

Guess today's image explains itself.

#4107

Another rainy day in the Valley of the Alleged Sun. Cloudy, cold and damp - I thought this was the desert? Guess good weather needs a vacation, too. Oh well, how fun to wear snuggy clothes and full shoes AND socks! Put those flipflops to bed for awhile.

We enjoyed a full busload today - another mix of unusual non-regulars. Apparently, we need to redefine the meaning of "regulars". In the last six months, two consecutive rides equals regular - not like when I first joined the 6am66 team. Ridership varies like the speed of a roller coaster - don't get too comfortable cuz it's gonna change.

We had a full crew in the BTA and a new guy got on at Rural and Baseline, placing himself right smack in the middle of us all. Bill gave him a smile and an official welcome and our conversation resumed. We were all talking back and forth and I would bend forward to talk past the new guy to Dave, then sit back to converse with Mark or Bill. The middle man wore a grim, scowly face - not sure if it resulted from the early hour, life issues, or just a personal desire to look fierce. Eventually, he moved across the aisle to the little seat next to Mark, twisting his body to the side, facing away from the BTA. I want to think he moved to accommodate the logistics of our conversation pit; however, his somewhat surly demeanor contradicted the idea of a thoughtful gesture. Some people just don't want to interact with others and I respect that. Glad everyone's not that way, though.

#4101

Whew! Survived another mad dash across Guadalupe this AM. Rain added an element of terror since Arizona drivers become even bigger idiots when moisture mixes with asphalt. Perhaps the rain/road mix exudes a potent brain numbing agent? Something happens cuz these people suck at driving on a good day with worse effects during the rain. Ask anyone, Arizona drivers are hideous.

Neither Bill nor Mark graced us with their presence today, so Dave and I owned the BTA. When we got on, a man sat in one of the middle side seats. He was hung over (literally) as he sagged sideways in the seat, barely upright. He re-arranged himself as we walked by and then seemed to sleep throughout the rest of the ride. He appeared well groomed, as if a shower and shave were part of his recent past, but sleep definitely occupied his mind. It made me sleepy to look at him. An odd collection of people filled the bus &ndash until the Broadmoor lady got on, only one couple seemed familiar. As if reading my mind, Dave commented how some days on the 66 could seem like a different world. Maybe the rain/road mix was affecting us, too?

the eyes have it

Thanks to all for concerns about my eyes. I am healing nicely and back at work, earlier than the last eye. The pressure still needs to go lower, but the paralyzed muscle is loosening and, since this weekend, every day seems to find added mobility. I guess a nerve, knicked by the anesthetic needle, caused the problem and it takes time for the nerve to re-build. Healing appears to be in progress and my stiff eye will soon be but a side item in a bus blog.

Crossing Guadalupe to get to the bus stop provided a bit of a challenge. The sun wasn't up and my depth perception remains somewhat compromised - not sure which is scarier, my inability to judge the speed of the cars or the unseen vehicle without headlights. I contemplated going later, after sunrise, but by then the traffic is much heavier and crossing becomes a game of Frogger - splat! Such choices for a visually impaired bus rider, eh?

Today's craft was #4107 with a new driver. Dave said this guy started off being 10 minutes late every day. Apparently the man had a different time schedule in his head than the one published in the bus book. I appreciate the intricacies of timing while driving a bus, but we all need to be on the same time at the starting gate. Not sure why the GPS on the bus didn't alert the dispatch to the time conflict? I thought they could tell exact bus locations at all times? Another technology myth, I suppose. The 6am66 arrived at 6:08 - new activity for me to blog log.

trabeculectomy #2

been a week or so - had second eye surgery on thursday and just didn't have time earlier in the week to post about the bus. needed to get all the work ducks lined up before the post-op leave.

as good as my first surgery went, this second surgery has gone bad. one of the nerve block shots paralyzed a medial muscle in the operated eye and I have double vision when looking to the right. a "clarence the cross eyed lion" kind of thing. my surgeon didn't see me on friday (day after surg), I had a stand-in who was more interested in the problems with my pressure and surgical site (pressure high, bleb not open, bleeding - fubar indeed) he generally dismissed my newly developed "lazy eye", so am assuming that it's not an unusual consequence and will rectify. going to see the surgeon tomorrow afternoon and hope the news will be better than it was on friday. to say that i am a bit distressed is quite the understatement. my first surgery was the cover story for successful eye events - i fear this second one could become a journal article about how many things can go wrong with a trabeculectomy.

hoped for much quicker return to work with this surgery, and not sure what the future now holds. will post if things get interesting, but fear the bus is stuck in the terminal for now.

ever the optimist (ha!), i did manage to find an art opportunity buried in the post-op mess and the image posted is an eye patch i knitted and embroidered for myself. decided i didn't want to sport the traditional black pirate patch (deepest apologies to J Depp), so developed this faux eye patch. the lashes are somewhat thicker than my own, but the basic eyedea is there. a close look reveals a few knitting flaws, but not bad work considering i did it with one dilated, half-crossed eye. can't keep a good fiber artist down.

#4131

Nice day on the bus. The BTA was full of regulars: NG, Dave, BG and one of the Steves. I realized we had the "Back Seat Boys" plus me - could shorten it to the BS Boys, although in all fairness, not too much BS flows in the BTA.

It was a nice ride with commentary shared on eye surgery, health care, overzealous lawyers and our litigious society, the hideous BCS game, the Phoenix Suns winning ways, the Godfather II and Robert DeNiro, libraries that might carry Godfather II, and possible illegal downloading of movies. We had a nice discussion about making coffee and donuts available on the bus. Options included taking turns bringing the coffee/donuts or installing vending machines on the buses with coffee and donuts for purchase. Bus attendants to serve coffee and donuts was also suggested, but we determined that bus fares would increase to pay the attendants, so we returned to the vending machine plan. Can you imagine the poor drivers if they installed vending machines on the buses? As if they don't have enough to deal with - I can hear the requests to make change, complaints about the food and drink, the spills, the smell. Bad, bad, bad idea.

A nice bus ride.

forgot to look

Completely ignored today's bus number - apparently some old habits die very easily.

Cold/flu has abated and hope that's the end for this season. Seems everyone is down with some version of it and I'm not the only one to suffer a recurrence. Guess we just run around infecting each other, over and over and over. Can't even blame the bus as ridership is way down. Had an interesting guy riding today. He sat in the BTA, back bench seat, Bill's usual area. Bill doesn't ride on Monday, so that space is unreserved until Dave stakes his daily claim. The odd thing about this guy was his dress. He sported a head-to-toe quilted camo suit with a knit cap and boots. An oversized duffle bag and backpack occupied the seat next to him. Dave commented that a hunter was riding today and the guy laughed and said yeah, deer hunting. He actually looked like he was going or coming from some outdoor expedition, but camping via public transport? It was very odd. He got off at Southern so figure he meant to transfer for a long ride east or west. Deer hunting??? I think not.

Today's image is in memory of my lunch bag which I forgot to grab from the bench at the bus stop. It had my breakfast bar, my vitamins and a plastic tub of lovely crab and corn chowder that I really looked forward to enjoying for lunch. I bet that chowder's gonna be a little rank later today - whew! Oh well, c'est la vie. Speaking of food, check out this website: http://www.cheddarvision.tv/ - you can watch cheddar cheese ripen - simply amazing.

#6418

This flu thing got seriously unfun yesterday with fever, chills, headache, etc., so no work for me today. Yesterday's ride home, however, included enough interesting elements to provide bus blog ramblings for a post today.

I took the 81southbound which meant a ride in one of the larger, newer 6400 class buses. The ride began uneventfully - my weakened condition making me grateful for smooth, quick passage - just wanna get home. All that changed at Broadway and McClintock when we picked up a wheelchair rider. The maneuvers to get him on the bus went without hitch; however, when the driver went to leave the stop, a warning light on the dash said the wheelchair ramp was disengaged and the bus wouldn't move. Clearly, the ramp was up and in place, but apparently the bus brains didn't know that. The driver reversed the procedure, opening out the ramp, but the bus didn't "kneel" - the hydraulics that lower the bus toward the curb failed to do their thing. She brought the ramp back up, closed the door but no-go, the bus still claimed the ramp was down. She then shut the bus down, waited a few, re-started the bus and the warning light returned. Looked like we were in for a bit of a wait.

The driver got on the radio with her superiors and the smokers on the bus all piled off to take advantage of the momentary lapse in travel. A couple of knuckle-draggers in the back cretinously shouted at the driver, "what's going on, man?", "can't be late for work, dude" charming group, eh? The driver got off the radio and proceeded to put the little orange safety triangles outside the back of the bus. Past experience told me it might be prudent to get off and be ready to get on the next bus, due in about 20 minutes. It meant standing in the middle of the gaggle of smokers, but I wanted to get home and knew the next bus would only pick up people waiting at the stop - not sitting on the broken bus. I did what I could to stay out of the smoke drifts and was happy it was sunny and 70 degrees - great bus breakdown weather. The driver turned the bus off again, waited several minutes, re-started and the warning light was gone. She tested the wheelchair system and this time the kneelers worked. She put the bus in gear and it moved, so we all re-boarded the bus and continued on our way. There was a bit of breath-holding when the wheelchair guy got off, but all systems functioned properly. The usual 25 minute ride took an hour to complete - no complaints, it gave me a blog post!

#4135

Back to business as usual - always such a letdown after the holidays and, yet, kind of nice to return to order out of the chaos. NG was in full BTA repose and Dave and I rounded out the set. Mark (BG) hasn't been on in awhile, but I think his schedule moves around school. When classes are in, he's an early rider. Both he and Dave graduate in May - do need to arrange a bus celebration.

A guy got on in front of Marcos de Niza who seemed to know Bill but I'd never seen before. Nice guy, happy to have him along for the ride. I wonder, though, he had an MP3 player and I could hear the music coming out of the earpieces. Now, if I could hear it sitting across from him on a not-so-quiet bus, what is it doing to his hearing? Is he playing it loud because he has a hearing situation or did he develop a hearing situation from playing it too loud? One wonders . . .

Image today is in honor of the lousy, friggin' head cold that has returned to haunt me. I have a cough, although nothing like the killer croups of my previous sojourn. This time, my nose is completely stuffed up. I sound like a caricature of a person with a cold - "By dame is ebb febber add I have a code id by dose" - central casting, where are you???? Hot toddy, tonight - I have no choice.

#4141

Couple of bus tales today. For openers, Dave's daughter, Sarah, visiting from Kansas City on her way to Seattle, accompanied him to school. She supports public transportation and wanted to experience Valley Metro's finest, the 6am66. Dave sat in his usual back bench seat location and noted that a loose panel behind the seat exposed the motor compartment, filling the BTA with fumes and noise. In his best "Tim the Tool Man" mode, Dave resourcefully stuffed two bus route schedule books between the seat and the panel - problem abated. After his efforts, Dana, our dear regular driver, gave Dave a towelette to clean the bus grime from his hands. Images today are the book wedges and Dave's hands and dirty wiper, taken with my phone camera. The quality suffers, but the event was not lost.

Sadly, coat guy did not make an appearance and I missed my last opportunity to go tactile and test the faux vs. leather of his jacket. Wish there had been more time with coat guy - so many questions. For example, those coats are quite bulky and I keep trying to picture the closet where those bad boys are housed. It has to be exceptionally large to accommodate the 26+ coats. Perhaps he turned an entire bedroom into a hanging shrine of sorts? No end to the speculative possibilities coat guy enabled - not to mention the game. Sigh . . .

#41something

Geezleweez - absolutely can't remember to look at the bus number. And to think I once considered a series of charts and graphs with bus number info - ha!

Ridership has slipped to the poverty level. Wondering why I didn't take vacation days this week - it appears everyone else did. NG and BG are conspicuously absent - bright boys. Bad news for the guess-the-jacket game - the coat guy told Dave that tomorrow is his last day on our bus. Seems his apartment was purchased and is going condo so he has to buy or move and he's moving. Probably can't buy as his money is all tied up in coats. Kidding, I'm really just kidding.

There's a lot of this apartment-go-condo happening and it really sucks for people who can't afford to buy. The real estate market went ballistic and now most people can't afford to sell and buy back the house they currently own. People get excited because their property value is up, but they seem to forget that if they sell their house and make the big profit, they have to go buy something equally inflated in value from someone who also wants a big profit - good luck with that! How on earth did I go from bus blog to real estate whining? Apologies.

#4154

Missed a few days for the holiday vacation. For years, ASU closed down for the two weeks surrounding the winter holidays - an alleged money savings move. A couple of years ago the then-new university president declared the savings a myth and now the university is "open" - business as usual except for the four specific holiday observance days. The bus ride belies the "open"ness of the situation as Dave and I owned the craft until the ride was well half over. Most ASU employees schedule additional vacation days to fill in and create an extended holiday, so I felt no surprise at the paucity of riders. Dave told me he used the bus on christmas day and it was quite empty. Dave said all bus rides are free that day and despite the freebie, he rode solo most of the time. The drivers are probably compensated with double time and a half pay that day and no revenue is generated. Nice gesture for the bus company.

The coat guy got on today but not wearing a football jacket. He had a Cleveland Cavaliers cap and his jacket said "hockey" on the front and four Warner Brothers cartoon characters filled the back. Without direct touching, not sure if I can find out if these jackets are real leather. They look a bit vinyl and I can't figure out how to get tactile with his sleeve in any subtle way to check out the real vs. faux situation. He never comes up to the BTA, just stays on the seat near the back door since he only rides about two stops worth. I'll figure something out.

Image today is a new quilt block I'm trying to design. I like the rotation - wish I could do some screen printing to catch the effect of multiples of the inner square. Sure do miss the big print tables in the fiber studio.

#41 yada yada yada

Totally forgot to look at the number today. Still not in a good bus habit. Stayed home yesterday as I overdid on Tuesday. Guess you can't be extremely inactive for six weeks and expect to leap immediately back into the jaws of full activity. Sigh . . .

We're having a bit of a cold spell - Weather Channel said it was 28 degree wind chill this morning. I believe it was every bit of 28 degrees and possibly lower. I sported full winter coat and gloves - usually wear them two or three times during the winter season. Arizona's nice, but you can't toss away the winter woolies - they are necessary, especially while waiting at the bus stop.

NG, BG, Dave and I had full command of the BTA today. The professor has ridden a couple of times lately - odd since classes are out and teaching types don't need to be at school. There's a new regular who started during my absence. What makes him especially interesting is his choice of outerwear. Every day he dons the ball cap and jacket of a different NFL team. The new BTA bus sport is guessing which team will grace his cloak-of-the-day. He said he has a jacket for every team (26, I believe) which is a substantial financial investment. If these are real leather and not WalMart faux, the coats must be $200+ for each. Very impressive.

Image today is in honor of the freezingass cold of this morning's bus wait.

#4143

Missed on Friday - daughter drove me to work and I never pass up a chance to visit with my offspring. Ridership is way down. School is out for the winter break, but I never felt the 6am66 was awash with students. Students don't usually break the bond with their blankets until the last possible minute and the earliest classes don't begin until 7:40 AM - only the most industrious would get to school an hour early. It is dark, dark, dark right now and maybe people forget to wake up? That's assuming they don't use alarm clocks. I find I don't want to crawl out of bed in the dark and I'm easy to rise. Oh well, guess I don't care how many are riding as long as the bus continues to arrive. Mark and Dave are foggy with colds - glad I got mine out of the way before the surgery. They don't seem to have the cough, just lots of nasal maneuvers.

Since I can't wear glasses yet, my distance vision is a blur (ho, ho, ho) and it makes for interesting viewing out the window with the dark sky and city lights. While looking for a night light picture for the blog, I found the "Earth at Night" map in jpg format. If you haven't seen this, click on the picture for the larger view. If you think we don't share this space called earth, this picture will help you re-visit that thought. Amazing considering the first electric light bulb wasn't invented until 1880 and the bright, long-lasting tungsten filament didn't get into the bulb until 1910 - if you go back just 100 years, this map would not be so bold. Not bus talk, but one thing leads to another and etc., etc., etc.

#41whatever

Brrrrrrrrr...... forgot how cold it could be waiting for the bus. The extremes of Arizona's winter temps always confound me. How does one dress for 38 degrees (no humidity!) in the morning followed by 76 degrees in the afternoon? Layers, my friends, lots of light-weight layers. The true layering master can combine the right pieces that enable morning warmth, yet shed simply and lightly for portage as temps climb later in the day. Ah, an entire blog might be devoted to desert dressing. I digress.

Today's ride was interesting - when Dave and I boarded, Dana, our current regular driver, handed us Christmas cards which even included personal notes! How nice is that? Both NG and BG failed to appear and ridership was generally light. Dana sat in the front passenger seat, directing a rookie who had control of the craft. This rookie appeared to be learning to drive the bus as well as learning the route. Cautious approaches and halting stops prevailed as we jerked along. Dana kept telling the neophyte to not run over the curb. I don't believe we ever ran over one, but wonder if a bad curb cut occurred before we got on the bus. We safely arrived at ASU - good luck to the new driver.

Found a nice image of a saguaro cactus decorated with holiday lights. These are everywhere in the Valley of the Sun and thought it made a nice companion to Dana's cards.

She's baaaaaaaaaaaaaack ............

Time to explain the unexplained absence. On November 1, I had eye surgery for glaucoma - a trabeculectomy, to be exact. It's a procedure that creates a drain site in the eye to aid in reducing intraocular pressure. We all have drains in our eyes and mine don't work well enough to keep internal pressure down. Drops, the standard glaucoma treatment, weren't working and I was losing vision, so the next alternative is this surgery. It's done as an outpatient and not painful; however, it requires limited activity until the eye stabilizes. Thus, I've been home for the last few weeks, taking it easy while my eye gets it together. At first blush it seemed like a dream-come-true. Stay home on sick leave while not feeling sick - how great is that? Au contraire . . . it's all fine if you can lead a normal life, but the restricted activity got to be seriously boring. I would have blogged, but life and times were so drab, there was nothing happening worth the write time. Anyway, I returned to work and the bus (#4135) today. The BTA was just as I left it - Newspaper Guy in situ and later Bicycle Guy sans bike - it's cold in the morning! It's good to be back in action - let the blogging resume.

#4141

Today was kind of boring, so I'll write about Friday's morning ride - much more interesting.

The "fam" had total ownership of the bus. Newspaper Guy aka Bill, was not there to secure the BTA, so the two little girls perched in full officialness on the back seat, in complete control of the surroundings with smiles as big as a crescent moon. The dad was in the middle of the bus, opposite the back door, guarding the girls and holding the stroller. The mom was in the very front seat, holding the baby on her lap. I sat in my original "regular" seat and exchanged shy looks with the baby girl. She is adorable and had those not-quite-awake heavy morning eyes. All she really wanted was to snuggle her little hoodie-covered head in the crook of her mother's arm and go back to sleep. I must say, I would have happily joined her were such a thing remotely possible. A rocking bus, dim lights and a warm loving arm and shoulder - recipe for the perfect sleep scenario.

The bus turned at Rural, stopped, and the mom and dad shepherded the little ones off the bus. The dad opened the stroller, helped the mom et al get organized and got back on the bus. As the door closed, a chorus of tiny voices yelled out, "Bye, dad, I love you." What a way to start his day. You've just got to admire these people, going to work and managing the kids' daycare all on public transportation. The husband and wife were discussing a doctor appointment for someone later in the day and talking bus times and daycare pickup. It's a challenge to keep all these things going under the best of circumstances and they are doing it without the apparent benefit of their own automobile. May all their buses be on time.

#invisible

Well, we certainly experienced an interesting ride on the 6am66. I almost need to elevate my feet and rest up before recounting the tale.

It began with another drive-by overshoot stopping. Clad in white linen overalls, I felt sure I presented high visibility at the stop today. However, the bus came down the road at an alarming speed and it seemed I would be completely passed by. At the last minute, the bus halted, quite a way down from the stop and another trek across the damp tree lawn ensued. As I got on, the driver apologized and screeched that the lights were glaring and she couldn't see. Refering to the interior lights, I guess, she turned them all off and we proceeded in complete darkness. NG, one of the Steves and I were the only ones on board, sitting in the BTA. We got to Guadalupe and Rural, the fam's mom and dad got on and the bus stopped running. The driver announced "they will send me a new bus", promptly re-started the bus and the ride continued. Not sure if that qualified as an official breakdown - her words implied yes but the actions implied no.

The ride continued in full darkness - felt much like a red eye flight, only missing the little pillows and navy blue blankets. We picked up BG and kept on going. Turning the corner from Baseline onto Mill, once again the bus stalled (?) and the driver easily re-started the craft. It appeared that turns might be involved in the stalls. Arriving at another stop, in answer to a question from a waiting patron, she had to advise that this was the 66 southbound. The bus was quite invisible without lights and the query made me wonder if she overzealously turned off a few too many lights. One of the new passengers needed a transfer and the driver had to bend over, her face almost touching the pad of tickets, to see what she needed. Time to turn on the lights? We proceeded and at the next stop, for reasons unknown, she suddenly turned on the lights. We kept going north on Mill and she roared past a stop where a woman was waiting. The woman yelled, the driver kept on going and Mark suggested she at least stop and wait. The driver just kept saying she couldn't see, the lights were glaring, and at the Broadway intersection, the bus stalled once more. So much for the turn theory. She again re-started the bus and we got underway. In spite of the stalls, we were quite on time although some poor people were definitely left standing in the dark. Today's image honors our invisible bus.

#4136

Quiet ride on the 6am66. Rain threatens today and, as previously noted, life in Arizona comes to a halt when rain falls. Uncommon, yes; however, rain is not rare and it boggles the mind why moisture from the sky creates such havoc. Listening to radio this morning and the traffic report indicates accidents all over the place. We're not talking sheets of rain, not even a steady rain, not even a light drizzle - this driving collapse occurs with 15-20 drops hitting the pavement. People won't ride the bus because some of this moisture might land on them and god knows what happens then. I guess that's why all the wrecks - the bus riders are trying to drive. Needless to say, we had light ridership.

New twist on "the family". While waiting for the 6am66, the 92 approached. Ever since Dave and I hopped on the 92 by mistake, he is on full alert - making sure we don't go down that path again. As he stood there, waving off the 92, I saw "the family" sitting in the BTA of the 92. Both buses go west on Guadalupe to Rural and since that's where the wife and kids usually get off, it wasn't completely odd for them to be on the 92. What was fun - when our bus turned north on Rural and stopped, husband and wife got on our bus, sans kids. Dave asked if they were juggling buses today and they advised they dropped the kids off at daycare. There are two childcare places within an easy walk of that intersection and I wondered if that was always part of their daily routine. They've been very regular and I might have to dust off the regular crown and have a large-scale annointing.

#4142

Ahhhhh, back on the bus. Thanks to all who offered kind words during my recent flu siege. Hope that doesn't happen again for a long, long while.

An interesting morning on the 6am66. It was late today - not horribly late - maybe 8 minutes - but we're at the beginning of the route and with only a couple of stops in front of us, little opportunity for things to happen and build up bus delay. When it finally appeared on the horizon, Dave and I got our packs on, good passengers that we are, and moved forward, ready to board. The next thing we know, the bus shot past us, just barely stopping. He overshot the concrete pad and we trekked over the tree lawn to get down to the bus door. Now, I must preface that the sun no longer shines at 6am - dark of day prevails and no street light illuminates the stop. When we got on, it was a new driver who announced that he didn't see us, using a tone that implied it was our obligation to be visible. He carried on about waiting behind bushes and trees ... huh? There are no trees or bushes at our stop ... what the hell? Made me almost want to cough on him. Looks like I'll have to find my trusty flashing reflector and start putting it on my pack. At the very next stop, he repeated the same action and, again, blamed the rider for waiting behind the shrubs. While there are shrubs at that stop, I've never seen that guy lurking in them. He usually sits on the bench, in front, at the stop. Unless that guy had a serious need to bush-lurk today, I think the driver was too busy talking to a passenger and not paying attention. Today's image shows the 6am66 flashing past.

On top of the crazy pickups, the dilemma of the family occupying the BTA repeated itself. We were forced to false sit when we got on and then move to our favored locations after they left. Dave hopped first to his regular spot and it did my heart good to see he is as Monk-like about his seating as me. Comfort zones, it's all about comfort zones. Later, I was especially glad I moved up to the BTA since a series of people got on who reeked of cigarette smoke. Smelling strongly in the BTA, I imagine it was suffocating in the main riding area. Is the aroma that comes off people who just smoked a cigarette considered second hand smoke? It smells bad, but it also makes me want to cough. Of course, my lungs are currently in a weakened condition, so it's difficult to judge. Oh well, c'est la vie.

Bedside blogging

Developed a cold with flu-like symptoms or, the flu with cold-like symptoms, and have stayed bedside these past two workdays. Decided to write a bedblog as being home ill is a drag. I won't go to work tomorrow and the way I feel right now, Thursday's not looking much better. The worst thing is the cough. Hacking, chest heaving, gut wrenching coughing. It's hideous!!! I went to the pharmacy for a supply of meds and discovered they no longer put dextromethorphan into cough drops. That's the stuff that really holds the cough at bay, but I guess the teen set were consuming copious quantities of drops and getting "high". Seems like an alleged high to me - I've never gotten a buzz from cough drops, just relief. I'm eating vitamin C, drinking orange juice and water and sucking on zinc-based, get-well quick drops. I guess I'm better than yesterday and hopefully not as good as tomorrow.

The worst thing about illness is daytime TV. Thank god for BBC - I'm entertained by their daily lineup and only wish I had my friends from Ohio around to laugh about "Are You Being Served?" Three of us used to watch that on the local PBS station and enjoyed recounting the episodes. I wonder if they've ever seen "Keeping up Appearances" ... I know they'd love Onslow.

Oh well, I get this every couple of years - I think my antibodies get low and need a booster, so I get sick, build up the antis and stay well for another couple of years. At least it's early this year and won't interfere with holiday food consumption. One has to consider the up and downside of every scenario. Hope to be back with a bus blog in a few days.

#4127

Haven't written in a few - not feeling so inspired lately and not sure why. Today is a Friday the 13th - some of my favorite days in the year. Don't forget to write your Law of Abundance checks!

Today's ride included a bit of a twist. Recently, a family regularly boards the bus between Price and McClintock. A father, mother, three small children and a folded stroller comprise their party and they always get off at Rural and Guadalupe. They usually sit in the very first seats - so noted because it requires a small climb over the stroller to get to the BTA. This morning, however, they filled the BTA (NG was not in situ) so I needed to make a quick seating decision. I plopped down near my original seat of choice and the ride continued. We got to Lakeshore and Guadalupe and a young man, regular rider, boarded. Since I occupied his "regular" seat, like me he faced a quick seating decision. He opted to plant across from me and the ride continued. I found myself wanting to get up into the BTA - I like riding on the bird perch with a view of the whole bus. I felt antsy and, almost, anxious. I sensed the young man didn't care much for his new digs, either. Once we turned the corner and dropped the family, I scooted up into the BTA and the young man popped across the aisle and into his standard space. Whew! A bit of an unsettling start to the day. So what was that about?

Walking from the bus stop to the office, my eyes were filled with the beginnings of one of Arizona's finest attributes - a lovely sunrise. A colleague once said that Arizona is the most beautiful place on earth, twice a day, sunrise and sunset. Believe me, that can be so true. Today's show wasn't overly spectacular, but the contrast of the light and the silhouettes of the trees grabbed my attention. Not in current possession of my regular camera, I used my phone camera. A bit weak, it still gives the idea. There are probably a gazillion Arizona sunrise/sunset pictures on the web and none of them do justice to the real thing. Still, we must try.

It doesn't matter

The 6am66 bus stop has "partial amenities" - chair-quality bench (back and arms) and trash can - no lighting or overhead canopy for shade or cover from the elements. We're a step up from the "natural" or "organic" bus stops with rock seats in Mesa, but not overwhelmed with extras. While waiting for the bus this morning, storms visibly moving in from the south, I wondered how much lightning protection does the typical bus shelter provide? Most Valley shelters seem almost treelike and we know that trees are verboten in lightning situations. However, as the bolts slam out of the sky, I feel extremely vulnerable without any cover.

Golf course protocol for lightning says to lie down on the ground. I understand the logic, but fear the bus driver wouldn't see me and stop if I chose to wait, fully prone on the ground. Or, if she did see me, just drive by and call the police to report a drunk passed out at the stop. Then the police would come and find out I wasn't passed out or drunk, just taking proper storm precautions and they might be angry and arrest me for wasting valuable police time. Then again, they might let me wait for the bus in the cruiser, providing much needed shelter from the storm. Probably not. Fortunately, storms during bus waits are infrequent and the lightning-dodging dilemma rarely surfaces.

Another great blog from Phoenix

Degrees of separation - this web thing has turned the world into one big neighborhood. Through a blog link on the UK bus driver's site, I learned about Flight Level 390, a blog written by a pilot from Phoenix. His writing entertains and his photography catches views only a pilot can see. A great find.

#4131

Monday morning and lots of sleepy eyes on the bus. I tend to over sleep on the weekend and can't sleep on Sunday night. Didn't fall asleep until 1AM and then woke up at 3:30AM. Didn't really sleep that much this weekend, so don't know what that's about. Oh well, if that's the worst thing I ever have to deal with . . .

The bus windows were open and we enjoyed natural air conditioning. How nice to not sit under the icy blasts of cold conditioned air. The outside temperature hovered in the low 70s and felt simply mahvelous, dahling. Not yet jacket weather, but no longer sweating upon arrival at the bus stop. I do believe fall is in the air. The image today reflects the sleepy eyes often found on the 6am66.

Another Valley Metro Bus Blogger!

Got a comment today on my most recent post from a guy named Coach Dave - he writes a blog about his rides on the Valley Metro. His blog can be found at http://davesbusride.blogspot.com/. He's a creative rider and I'm thrilled to read another's experiences riding in this Valley of the Sun - check it out!

Also, while looking at Coach Dave's blog, I found a link to a previoulsy unknown bus blog which led me to another bus blog written by a driver in Torbay, England - Bus Driving is neat - lots of good pictures and you get to hear the driver's side of the story. Definitely worth a visit.

#4138

Back to same old, same old. Except, not exactly. Newspaper Guy (Bill) wasn't there today, but he's never gone for long. Bicycle Guy (Mark) has returned to the regular 6AM66 fold and Dave and I rounded out the BTA. Business as usual prevailed until a review of the riders revealed an abundance of new and different faces with some long familiar and some more recently familiar mixed in the pot. Broadmoor lady boarded and joined us in the BTA. Like trees that lose leaves in the fall and grow new in the spring, bus ridership cycles through change. A core contingent exists, and the rest come and go as life circumstances demand. Feeling a bit reflective today, I guess.

Have taken the 81 home most evenings recently. My timing to catch the 66 just sucks and I'm so glad I have a choice. Always a bigger 6400 class bus, the 81 feels like a workhorse next to the cartoonish quality of the 66. I like the contrast and will probably continue to do the dual route thing for awhile. Gives me that much more potential for blogging material. Last night a man with a white cane got on the bus, talking on his cell phone. He couldn't seem to pay and talk and board all at the same time and, to his credit, he abandoned the call to take care of business. He told the driver where he wanted to get off and then sat down and made his call. When he got off, he apologized profusely to the driver for his lack of attention when boarding. Amazing how a little courtesy leaves such a positive feeling. I might have thought less of him for using the phone, but he recognized the problem and made amends.

#4130

Welcome back, eh? Took off last week to boost Amtrak's earnings for 2006. My mother and I flew to Chicago and trained to Seattle on the Empire Builder, then to Los Angeles via the Coast Starlight and finished back in Maricopa (yes, a train station lives in Maricopa, Arizona) on the Texas Eagle. A nice adventure which I hope to document somewhere on the WWW. While in Seattle, nothing would do but to photograph a bus so I captured this image of one of their articulating craft. Didn't realize a right turn was imminent or would have waited to shoot and display it in full articulation. Note the electric trolly poles on the top! Seattle's streets flourished with buses and the train station held "Sounder" cars - commuter-style trains covering the length of the Puget Sound region. They don't seem quite as enchanted with their autos as Phoenix, but still not as mass transit sophisticated as New York or even Chicago.

Speaking of Chicago, we experienced the death/thrill-ride of a lifetime on the Blue Line! Our pre-train train adventure occurred as we traveled from O'Hare airport to Union Station in downtown Chicago. The trains are much like NY subway cars - a bit shorter perhaps but with that same well-worn, industrial essence. We sat at the end of the next-to-the-last car on the train, right beside the car-connecting mechanisms. Not sure if that combination of car choice and body location worked to enhance the violence of the ride or not. The train would speed up to what felt like 100 MPH and then slam down to 0 MPH in a single intake of breath. While roaring along the track, the car swayed back and forth, in extremis. Envision a game of crack-the-whip and we were the last man attached. An awesome beginning to a train adventure.

Just like riding the 6AM66, I found that people constituted the best part of our train trip. You just gotta love public transportation.

Believe me, it doesn't matter

Today's post does not discuss today's ride. Last night I experienced my most unique bus ride yet, so prepare for a longer than usual entry.

I worked late and headed for the bus stop about 7:10 PM. The bus "should" arrive at 7:28 but in the evening, schedules seem to get skewed. Luckily (hah!) I left early as the bus came at 7:20. Thus began a ride to remember. When I boarded, oddly, all the wheelchair site seats were set in the fully locked and upright position. This left only the two front seats and the brain trust area open for seating. I hate those front seats, so proceeded to the back where a young couple occupied the rear bench seat. We rode in comfortable silence, south on Mill, adding just one more rider. The bus pulled into the left turn lane to go east on Baseline and stopped for the light.

Suddenly, everything stopped. The lights went out, the air conditioner turned off and the engine became silent. The lights flickered on and off, but no action from the engine. The driver tried to re-start, but nothing worked. The driver opened the doors, said he couldn't identify the problem, didn't know if we would get a mechanic or a shuttle or another bus or what. He said he couldn't let us off the bus since we were in the middle of traffic and he would be liable if any of us got hurt. A very busy intersection, I had already envisioned us inching around the bus to get to the crosswalk area. The young couple and I started chatting - they questioned me extensively about my needle and thread tattoo - the other passenger talked on her cell phone. We relaxed in a what-are-you-gonna-do-about-it attitude and only the driver seemed rattled. Another bus pulled up alongside and I heard that driver ask our driver if we were broken down. Our driver affirmed and the other guy drove away. Turned out, that bus was the next 66 and the jerk eyeball ass driver didn't offer to let us get on his EMPTY bus and continue on our way. Not that it mattered, really, but what in the world happened to customer service?

Eventually, a Tempe police officer arrived to help manage traffic. A large bus, stopped dead in the only left turn lane of a major intersection, seemed worthy of police intervention. He held up traffic so we could get off the bus and the four of us proceeded across Mill and then across Baseline to the next bus stop. I figured I'd just wait for the next 66 as I had no one to call and come get me. The young man from the bus called his father and arranged for a pickup. It turned out that they lived near me so I accepted a ride home. A motorcycle accident blocked the intersection at Rural and Baseline, so the rescuer had to drive down to McClintock to go south. I had him drop me off at Walgreen's - just didn't feel right having him backtrack to my house. I walked home and as I headed west on Guadalupe, what comes rolling up? The next 66. Timing rules everything.

This crazy bus ride produced a lot of interesting interactions. I thoroughly enjoyed talking to Aaron and Isha, the young couple. She works at Trader Joe's, so maybe I'll see her some time when I'm shopping. What a disappointing lack of customer service from Valley Metro, though. I think the situation befuddled our driver and his critical thinking skills failed him. He could have asked the next driver to let us on his bus, but we were not on his mind. I guess we were on my mind because I was one of us - perspective. Oh well, get to blog about it and any blogworthy bus experience equals time well spent.

#41something or other

Geez, I looked but have totally lost the number. Whatever, it was a great discussion day on the bus. Bicycle Guy (Mark) is back on the 6am66 and he and Goatee Guy were talking about bus riding and the city of Mesa.

Apparently Mesa doesn't want to put much money into public transportation, so it really doesn't have many routes and maybe 10 bus stops have benches. GG said he called Mesa to inquire about getting a bench for a stop and whoever he talked to said, "Doesn't that stop have a rock?", referring apparently to a semi large boulder near the bus stop sign. Not sure how many the rock seats, however. Outstanding customer service, eh? BG and GG then went off about an imaginary city council meeting where all the chairs were removed and replaced by a single rock. Also, council members had to walk two miles to get to the meeting. Also, a really large hole was cut in the roof of the council chambers to insure that rain and sun could enter. Also, oops, the meeting must have started early, so they'll have to wait 30 minutes for the next meeting to start.

It was a great discussion; just a shame council people are too busy driving their oversize, gas-guzzling, jerk eyeball trucks to worry about incidentals like public transportation, traffic congestion and the environment. I looked at Mesa's website, and, shockingly, they received an award recently from the EPA for being a "commuter friendly" city. Duh and hello????? Wonder how much the church city paid the EPA to get that award? Gosh, I hate it when I get political. Today's image is supposed to be depressing as in what I get when I think about cities like Mesa and their insulated, isolated, center-of-the-universe policies.

#4138

Wow, it has been a few since my last post. I've become temporarily irregular as a rider and it damages my ability to blog, buswise. Oh well, helps me better understand the comings and goings of others on the 66.

Dave said yesterday the 6am bus never arrived and he had to wait until 6:30. He seemed to think it was an act of rebellion or vengeance on the part of our new regular driver. I didn't quite follow his reasoning. He said it was based on information he received about our driver from other drivers, but that didn't make sense to me and I'm thinking I just didn't hear him correctly. Anyway, when we got on the bus he questioned the driver about yesterday's missing 6am66 and she said the bus broke down. That seems more logical to me than a purposeful plot to upset the rhythm of the 6am66 route.

NG and EG were on the bus today - makes for a great sense of camraderie when everyone is chatting away. We had some rain this morning and ridership was light. People in Arizona behave strangely in the rain. Much ado about getting wet, as though they might melt if a drop of rain hit them. I've heard of people cancelling appointments because they didn't want to go out in the rain. Talk about a failure to understand the logic. That is one mindset I just can't seem to follow. Today's image is detritus. That's what I feel like so that's what you get.

#4143

Whew - long time gone! Worked from home last week while new windows were installed. Missed the whole first week of school and I'm not complaining. Too many people - what are they thinking?

Wondered if the bus would have new wrinkles, but will take a few weeks to see what's up and who's riding. Bicycle guy is back, along with Engineering guy. We were all in the BTA and it felt nice and comfortable. If grades stay good and all goes well, we'll have some graduations in May. Need to have a bus party - mimosas at 6am?

A young girl got on the bus and I wondered about her destination. I wanted her to be in kindergarten, but reality told me she probably wasn't on the bus alone unless she was at least in high school - puhleez god don't let her be in college. Gloriosky, she got off at Mill and Broadway, the corner where Tempe Union High School lives. She just looked so very, very young and I didn't want to think I was old enough that college kids could look as young as her. Bad enough she's in high school, but hopefully a freshman. I remember when the NCAA basketball players looked like old men - somewhere along the line, they started to let children play the game. So what's up with that?

#4133

Haven't posted in a few - things have been same old, same old, so nothing to report. I can verify, however, that today's bus had a white wall in the back and it does make a difference in bus lighting. Breathtaking news, eh?

Dave was back in the BTA - medical report must have indicated he is still alive as he got on the bus and sat upright without assistance. Good going, Dave. One of the Steves was riding and eventually we were joined by a man I will call Liberal Guy. He's been on before, but no discernible pattern of riding. I call him Liberal because he uses all the language and commentary that would make a good liberal proud. This is not a criticism, especially since I tend toward the left of center myself; however, he is so negative, it almost makes me want to be conservative. He definitely sports the half-empty perspective which indicates to me that no matter what happens, he wouldn't be happy with it. Even if everything happened as he thought it should, he'd find fault with why it happened or how it happened or etc., etc., etc. It's interesting to listen and, hopefully, learn.

On a totally non-bus topic (I know it's a bus blog, but it's mine and I'm the writer) I have to explain today's image. Through a feed from 37Signals, I read a blog entry about "pimp cups" which led me to a website called IcedOutGear. It is a place for the hiphop fan to outfit his/her gangsta self. What fascinated me most were the "grillz" - appliances that fit over the teeth for the ultimate dazzling smile. Initially, I could see the food trapped between the rhinestones; however, the ad cautions that these are decorative and not for eating. Since I'm not much of a hiphop fan, I probably won't ever get to see some grillz in person. Have to settle for the internet.

#4154

Made sure and looked at the bus number today. The bus seemed different when I got on - finally decided the back wall was covered with dark carpet and it changed the lighting effect. Lighting effect on a bus? Seems a bit incongruous... Hope I remember to look tonight and see how the back wall is decorated in this evening's bus.

Today is a mishmash of uneventfulness - ridership was low, but this is one of the slowest times of year on campus and most humid in Arizona. I think people head for the hills and there's only a skeleton crew of us left to hold the place together. When I got on today, the driver was talking and it sounded like she was placing death-like threats on her husband. Newspaper Guy was fearful of more male-bashing when I joined the group, but I told him I'd save it for another day. Need to hold those cards sometimes. NG, who unintentionally collects dogs, was pleased to announce that two of his current collection are leaving his nest. Round of applause and yay!

In other news, Dave is in absentia - he's having some medical tests done and hope the results are good. He helps anchor the BTA on Mondays when NG is off and we need him back in position.

Not much else to report from the 66.

#41.......

Back in the saddle today - spot on time for the 6am 66. When I got on the bus, the driver and Newspaper Guy were chatting away and I joined the fray. Quite a bit of friendly male-bashing - NG was battered and bruised, but he'll get even, I'm sure.

Engineeering Guy was back! Said he's moved closer to the Southern/Mill stop and thinks he can make the 6:10am 66. He's so refreshing - hope we see him more often. No exciting engineering terms today; however, we discussed polynomials - one of my favorite words. Apparently, he looked at prime-rich polynomials from a new, non-math point of view and discovered (created? invented? not sure how new things evolve in math) a unique approach. His discovery so impressed his math professor, he will make a presentation at MathFest, the big annual conference of the Mathematical Association of America. We have a math celebrity on our route! Is that cool or what? In searching for polynomials to help create today's image, I found a nice website about math. Check it out. We'll send positive thoughts and karma to EG as he prepares for his presentation.

4130, I think

A bit of a twist today. I fiddlefarted around and missed the 6AM 66. It wasn't a mad dash to the stop only to see the bus drive away - I knew I wouldn't make it, so hung around the house until time for the 6:30. I believe we can chalk this up to my vertigo, another dizzying experience.

The 6:30 was great, though, as Mark AKA Bicycle Guy got on and we had a nice catch-up chat as we rode to ASU. He said he'd be back on our 6am ride once classes start again. The 6:30 had a nice bunch of riders and the scooter guy from the other morning was there. It was just enough more people, I almost want to try the 7, 7:30 and 8am buses to see how they populate. I'll be staying late for a class on Thursdays starting fall semester, so maybe I'll use that as my experimental day and go in later to test the water. I'm thinking bus research could become a semi-career if I let it. There are places I want to go and things I want to do on the bus - just need to find the time.

something or other

Completely forgot to look at the number this morning. Let's blame it on the vertigo, OK? I might let this condition linger for awhile - could become the blanket excuse of the century. It was a medium level ride today - NG read the paper and commented while I knitted and commented back. Not too crowded and, at the end, a couple of men joined us in the BTA. After a good morning was exchanged, NG made a comment about going to work and let me tell you, release the hounds! The one man started in about his job and getting late notice and no time to get to work on time and etc., etc,. etc. He was not a happy man, but somehow it seemed he might be better for getting out his frustration. I got off two stops after he got on, so I don't know how long the diatribe continued. Hopefully, the rest of his day goes well.

In yesterday's mail, I received a Washington Post article from my Uncle John. He knows I write a bus blog and thought the article was appropos. It is about two guys who ride a Washington metro bus and wrote a play about the characters on their bus. I've often thought the bus could be the basis of a TV series - a kind of "Night Court" on wheels. You have the regulars and then each episode involves them with the different characters and situations that occur. I applaud these guys for actually doing what I only thought about. I found the article online and here's a link: "The 70" - Washington Post 25July2006" Reminiscent of the 66.

#4127

Been a few days - got a bout of vertigo - weird stuff. Still dizzy and confused, but some would say that's my normal state . . .

Today's a bits and bobs kind of day on the bus. Newspaper guy is off on Monday so I had the BTA to myself for a few. There's a new guy at the bus stop - he smokes, so he lingers away from the actual stop area until the bus arrives. He seems nice enough and he got up in the BTA, too. There was a young man already on the bus who had a golf bag. He got off at Rural and Guadalupe - probably taking the 72 up Scottsdale Road to Karsten or one of the 3 million other golf courses in the Valley. Then a guy got on with an oversized razr scooter - he got off at my stop at ASU. It must have been equipment day on the bus - golf clubs, scooter and then a woman who has ridden 3 or 4 other times. She has a wheelchair that she sits in and when the bus comes, she gets up, folds the chair up, carries it on the bus, rides a few stops, gets herself and the wheelchair off the bus, sits back down and wheel-walks her way down the sidewalk. She has a nice quilt folded on the wheelchair and a pillow seat. She seems well-equipped and I'm ever so curious why she has the chair. She seems fit enough to get it on and off the bus - I know there are probably a million physical reasons why someone needs a wheelchair and they don't have to be obvious. She just seems so capable and I don't think she'd use the chair if it was for someone else. Oh well, ours is not to question why or whatever.

I'm obsessed with knitting right now, so thought I'd bring the current project on the bus - it's just going in circles at the moment, so easy to knit without a pattern on the bus. Scanned it and let it have its little corner of fame in today's blog.

#4139

Geez, it's been a week since I posted on the blog. Work has been wicked and then I don't ride the bus on the weekend . . . guess seven days can slide by quickly.

Our regular driver, Steve, is on a different route now. He told me they switch routes so they don't burn out. I sure will miss him. He's been the best of the drivers I've experienced in the last year. Newspaper guy told me the new driver might have time issues. I knew Steve wasn't driving, so this morning I made sure and got to the stop with time to spare. I didn't notice the time the 66 arrived, but NG told me later that he technically "missed" the bus yesterday as it was pulling away when he arrived at the stop. He had his wife drive him to the next available stop and he finished the ride on the 66. Today was OK, but apparently timing could be an issue. Maybe it's just newness on the route? Gotta keep us riders on our toes.

Today's bus was full! People got on at virtually every stop and no one was getting off. When the Broadmoor lady got on, the seat at the very back next to NG was the only one left and she came back to the BTA. At Broadway and Mill, a young man in blue hospital scrubs got on and had to stand. I figured he'd get off at Tempe St. Luke's Hospital, but not so. Two more people ended up standing with the scrub guy. It was a full house, standing room only. Wonder what makes that happen some days?

#41Steve

Calling today's bus the #41Steve is no typo. Our regular driver's name is Steve, so what could be more appropos? Then, yesterday, I met a new Steve who is a part-time regular on the 66. We all know Steve the Mechanic, who still shows up on occasion. And today, NG introduced me to another Steve, a regular who, for reasons unexplained, hasn't been with us for awhile. I assume he's back now and I'm surrounded with Steves. I have known the occasional Steve over the years, but to have so many circling about in the same microcosm of my life - I'm thinking some kind of "other meaning" is in progress - like crop circles or Stonehenge. If we were in Sedona, I'd swear a vortex had taken over the 66. Whatever, it's fodder for blog posts.

The bus was quite full today, equally balanced between regulars and irregulars. One oddity - Broadmoor lady got on at the Broadway and Mill stop - a good half mile south of her usual boarding point. If she didn't walk or drive, she needed to take the earlier 66 in order to get there to catch the 6am 66 (there we go with the 6's again...). Maybe she walked down to Walgreen's for something, planning to catch the bus at the corner? Whatever, she was out of place and that gets my OCD clanging. She still remained Broad, however - Broadway/Broadmoor - sheesh!

#4125

Yes, we are double posting today. Tonight's ride home had several oddities I just couldn't ignore. To begin, I was 10 minutes early to the bus stop, and the bus never showed up. It was 111 degrees, no breeze and I had no water. The stop is in the shade, but the building that provides the shade is in sun all day and heat pulses off of it for hours after the sun has passed. To compound the frustration, a road closure re-routed all buses down Mill so bus after bus after bus passed by - just none of them was the 66. Finally, after 50 minutes waiting, the 66 arrived. A lady on the bus told me the previous bus broke down, explaining the delay. It was 5:10 PM, high rush hour, and the ride took forever. There was a bad accident on Mill, just past Southern although it managed to only block one lane. Rush hour and traffic reduced to one lane really drags out the ride.

There was a man in the front seat, opposite the driver, who was either loaded on drugs or suffering from some kind of neurological disorder. He would sway around in the seat, get a big huge grin on his face and then laugh. He'd straighten up, lean against the post for awhile and then repeat the whole thing again. It was weird. He was on the bus when I got on, so don't know how long he'd been riding. At Alameda a young man got on and sat a couple seats away from the front. The bus was approaching Southern and the front seat guy suddenly got up and started asking everyone if they had a cigarette. He got no response until he asked the young man who asked if he was getting off soon. The man said yes and the young man said hold on, I can help you. He stood up, got out a pouch of tobacco and a paper, and proceeded to roll a cigarette. It was amazing to watch him and I was torn at his generosity and yet it was a cigarette for godsakes! A paradoxical act of charity, I believe. He gave the man the cigarette and they both sat down. The bus continued on, stopping as usual and the man didn't get off. The young man departed at Southern and Mill and the front seat guy still was riding. I didn't see what happened to the cigarette, but I will never forget its creation. What a night on the bus.

#4126

That might be last night's number, but I'm pretty sure it's this mornings, too. I looked, but the ride was so interesting, the number left my head almost immediately. Maybe 4123? Oh well, we know it started with 41.

Today was interesting because on old "regular" was on the bus - Steve. Not Steve the Mechanic, but a man named Steve who sits in the BTA with Newspaper Guy. We were all properly introduced and it turns out Steve works for Amercia West/US Air and his shifts rotate. That's why he's a part time regular on the 6AM bus. I remember in early blog posts that I thought someone in the BTA worked for America West and I later learned that neither NG nor BG was an airline employee. Now that I've met Steve, I bet I heard him talking and assumed one of the others was the airline guy. I said something about my curiosity at why people come and go and he said he'd wondered that himself. I know BG is currently working a different shift and won't be back on the 6am 66 (wow, that's almost a 666 thing ...) until late August. I guess Steve will be with us for awhile and then gone again when his shift changes. It feels good to have a little order and reason behind these comings and goings. Sometimes I feel like Monk -- just need the ducks to line up.

#4130

Another morning on the Valley Metro - low key pretty much says it all. Wonder if the heat is starting to take its toll. One evening ride last week I witnessed a near-fisticuff incident. A seriously intoxicated man got on the bus at Southern and Mill. He barely made it up the steps and kind of swung around, falling onto the front seat, next to the door. He was swaying so badly and his eyes were so red and bloodshot - I almost felt hungover just looking at him - yowser! Anyway, at Baseline and Mill, a young man got up to leave and stood in front of the drunk, waiting for the bus to stop. Suddenly there were words and the young man turned, faced the older man and took a fighting stance. You could feel the tension; however, the young man took the high road and turned away, walking off the bus. The driver conversed with the older man and in a couple of seconds, he got off, too. Figure the driver told him to leave. Probably not good to let him loose on the street, but can't have him on the bus harassing other riders. No good solution to that problem. Guess I can't blame the heat for that event - alcohol was the major player.

Bus this morning was freezing. We can shuttle back and forth in space and have quantum physics, string theory, fast food - why is heating and air conditioning so difficult to manage? I realize the variables are constantly changing, making accuracy difficult, but I'm on a bus in Arizona summer, wishing I had a winter scarf and coat. What is that about? Image-inspiring, I guess.

I forgot . . .

Today was such a fun day, I completely failed to note the number. Let's make something up, let's say it was 4141 - OK?

The ride started out as usual - Newspaper Guy in the BTA, along with me and Dave. Thursday must be a big paper day as there were tons of sections and NG was sharing stories with us left and right. I just learned we have two serial killers and a serial rapist at large in Phoenix! I never watch local news and only read international press online, so it is difficult to keep up with who is doing what to whom. Anyway, we were reading and chatting and discussing and Goatee Guy got on and it just got chattier. Then, at Broadway and Mill, Engineering Guy boarded the bus! Long time gone and he was a welcome sight. He nestled right into the BTA with everyone and said he felt like he was coming into a family. Isn't that nice? Public transportation really does have a nice side.

Assorted

Missed posting on Friday - lots to do and not much time to do it. We had a great bus ride - it went to SRO! Summer has been such light ridership - it was amazing to see so many people. All the serious regulars were perched in the brain trust area and the bottom of the bus was full of newbies - standing, sitting - they were everywhere. Oddly, it was fairly quiet for such a crowd. No one knows anyone else, so silence prevails. Today, there were lots of people, but we didn't get to SRO. I have noticed that cat lady and Broadmoor lady haven't ridden lately. Gosh, you give a girl a crown and she calls it quits. Hate to lose good regulars.

The other thing that happened Friday, or maybe it was Thursday . . . the days do run together when it's hot. Anyway, it rained! A lovely event which prompted me to buzz around outside my building and take pictures of the remnants. I've built a rain quilt picture and included it in this post. I'm particularly fond of the little seat raincoat on the bicycle. Nothing worse than a wet butt when riding home.

#4143

Whew! Been awhile since the last post. Took some time away from work and no work means no bus. The 4th of July holiday is always good for extending the long weekend and I just took it a few days longer. Back to the grind and I am not finding it easy to return.

Return is the name of the game for the bus - today, Mark (AKA bicycle guy) came back for a visit. He changed to a later work schedule and we haven't seen him on the 66 for quite a while. He said today was only temporary riding status, but we'll see him around occasionally. Goatee Guy sat in the BTA with us all and we had an interesting discussion about an uncle of his who built a basement, after the fact, under his house. Guess the uncle collected lots and lots of guns and wanted a safe place to store and otherwise take care of his ordnance. Never know what you're going to talk about on the bus. Neither cat lady nor the Broadmoor lady got on today. They had been so regular, hope this means vacation time, just like me.

Made an image for commemorating the 4th of July. Went to Flo and only saw what fireworks were shooting up in the various towns between Flo and Tempe. That's one of the nice things about desert living - you can see for miles, including fireworks displays.