Wed August 26th

Morning train smelled like a dump. Sometime you get a newer train and sometimes you get the smelly, dumpy trains. It is just the luck of the draw. I just find it hard to believe that the unions keep asking for more money and BART ticket prices quietly go up every year, yet they still run smelly trains.

Afternoon: Why doesn't BART have Wi-Fi? Why doesn't it also show movies, tv, music videos? This is the San Francisco Bay Area. Our transportation should be hip and technologically savvy. Instead our ride still exists like it was in the 1970's. Dry, Dry Dry.

I love watching people start to read a magazine or book and then their eyes get a little heavy....sure enough one starts to hear snoring sounds.

Finally, Obama '08 - It's time to put away the pins people. I saw a women wearing one on her hat today and it just need be put in a drawer so you can sell it 20 years from now as an antique.

Prehistoric

Friday August 21st

The most recent trend that I have seen over the last year is the amount of people that listen to their iPods while riding. I am sure the diversity of music would make for an interesting compilation CD. I personally don't listen to an iPod because I use my time on BART as a time to relax and have as little stimulation as possible. Others, their iPod probably relaxes them or at least passes the time.

Here is my problem. Too many people blast their iPods while riding and the noise can be very annoying. It's like pulling up next to a car at a stop sign when they have their windows down and blaring their favorite music. I don't need to hear it but at least the light turns green and I can drive a way from it. On BART, we are stuck with the obnoxious noise/music for a long period of time. Sometimes 5 minutes and sometimes 30 minutes. In any case, it is totally annoying!!!

Take Friday. I had just gotten off of work after a hectic day and week and I just needed to relax on BART before I got home. Normally when I get on BART, I do make an effort to not sit next to anybody who is listening to an iPod for the above reasons. On Friday, the only seat left was next to a young girl who of course was listening to her iPod. It wasn't until I got settled in my seat that I noticed the extreme sound that was blaring through her ear buds. All I could think of was I hope she gets off soon so I can relax. Sure enough, she outlasted me and I ended up getting off first but not before I had to listen to some of her cheap dance/house music. I walked off the BART train and realized that I had a headache that I hadn't entered the train with.

To the girl that I sat next to: Thanks for making my BART ride lousy. To everyone else, please be considerate in listening to your iPod. Go ahead and listen to your music but please keep the volume down.

Why do this?

Why do this? Good question. BART is an organization that I have spent a lot of time with. Countless hours commuting back and forth.

I have seen a lot of things over the years that sometimes surprise me and sometimes not. Why I am doing this is to give observations of an average commuter. Not just observations on how BART is doing but also on the riders that share space with me. I am here to speak the truth and just give a perspective that doesn't seem to be out there. I mean there is a lot of good, crazy, annoying, and frustrating stuff that goes on at BART stations & on BART trains and I am just the right person to give an opinion. I hope that the opinions that I express will either make you think, make you laugh or just touch a raw nerve. BART commuters need a voice and that voice is me.

Watch out because the person that is standing or sitting next to you on BART could be me and I will talk about or exploit you on this blog. The question is can you figure out who I am?