carpooling

since i started my new job, i've been able to start taking doing the casual carpool thing. save me money that i'd be spending on BART, and it's way faster getting to work. the driver saves money on the bridge tolle and time taking the carpool lane. the environment is conserved. everyone wins.

i usually hop in the car and space out on my ipod. that said, it's still an adventure each morning seeing who i'll end up riding with.on more than one morning, i've thought to myself "i'm going to die on the bay bridge with a bunch of strangers." some of the cars are pretty nice with leather interior. then there was the morning i got into the front seat of a beaten up modern volkswagen beetle. i settled in, looked up and saw that the glove compartment was partially held closed with a bit of wire, from the handle to the vent of on the dashboard. that was one of the mornings i thought i was going to die in a tiny car. sometimes the other passengers i wait in line with are a little odd. this one guy i've seen a few times always wears a photographer's vest, the kind with the millions pockets, and carries an over stuffed messenger bag that he can barely close. he looks like the unabomber. the other day he got in line, pulled a belt out of his bag and proceeded to put it on. i didn't understand why he couldn't have done that before he left the house. i understand if you are in a hurry, but if you can make it down the street without the pants falling down, you don't really need the belt anyway, right?

most drivers play NPR or something sort of talk radio in the car. last week, i got in a car, and i realized that the man was playing a "how to play the guitar" cd. kind of odd. especially when the cd refers extensively to the workbook you should be looking at for the chord progressions while you are PLAYING THE GUITAR, not DRIVING A CAR. he played it the whole 25 minutes it took to get over the bridge. in between chord progressions, the cd played the same 2 minute track of music that you were supposed to learn. what? i don't get it.

this morning i rode in the back of a convertible mini cooper. top down. which was kind of awesome, only i didn't wear a jacket this morning because it was such a nice day. i almost froze to death going over the bridge if it weren't for the extra sweater the driver happened to have in the backseat.

that's about it. i'll see you on the blog again in a few months. ha!