All About Trey

Life, Travel, Adventure

Filtering by Tag: Metro

Diet Status x 2

So how's the car diet going? Not too bad. Yes I drove to WV for work on Monday, and then to the office on Thursday since I had a BD meeting in Fair Lakes, but I did walk/metro on Tuesday, Wednesday, and today. So not too bad. A couple of lessons learned.

One: I really need to pay attention to the weather. I worked late on Tuesday and then had dinner with my customer. During dinner, it started to rain. So we sort of lingered over dinner until it slowed to a sprinkle. So we headed out and I walked up to the Metro only getting a little bit wet. When I got off the metro in DC and rode the escalators up, it was like I was entering monsoon season. Just torrential downpours. I huddled under the station entranceway protected from the rain with a couple of scared tourists, a businessman, and then three or four homeless people. When it looked like it was slowing down, I made a break for it. Now, it's like 7 blocks, so it's not really a "break". It's more like I started to hike. And not even a half a block later, down comes the rain again. So I quickly sprint down the block and scuttle into a CVS. I breakdown and buy an umbrella (ella, ella, ella) and the woman looks at me. "Is it really that bad out there?" Translation: wow, you're drenched. Thanks.

Two: Your iPod is your safety device. It allows your escape into your own make believe world where you don't have to talk to the large drunk man at the corner of 15th and K who is there every morning begging. It means you can ignore some of the more bizarre conversation on the metro. When you have your iPod in, you walk smartly, focused on some random distance ahead while the headphones block out any attempt to intrude on your life. It really is essential.

Three: Just like Paris, except it's not. Yes, now that I'm enjoying a much more personal urban lifestyle, I'm opening myself up to the wonders of the city. To include some of the not so wonderful smells of the city. Seriously, coming out of the McPherson Square metro on a hot, sunny day is a rank, rank, experience. The smell of rancid urine is almost nauseating. And when you are in Paris you'll get a whiff of something like this, but Washington DC just isn't Paris. And now that I'm thinking about it, that's not necessarily a bad thing. I guess it could be worse, we could have dog poop all over the place.

On Thursday when I did drive, I had to fill up my tank. $51. Ouch. It will be interesting to see if I can keep the number of days that I drive down to less than 5. That's my goal.

Oh, and I've started the Atkins Diet. Again. But I have lost over 5 pounds. So there's some progress.

Hillary gives her concession speech. I hope she does it right and really works to help unite the Democratic Party!

Know Hope!

Metro or Sauna?

So I had to take my car into the shop. I'm hearing this weird noise and I don't want to put off getting it looked at. I'm gone next week, and then when I get back Mom arrives on that Wednesday in preparation for the surgery. And I don't want to have her driving my car if there's a problem. So anyways, I take the car to the shop and then I catch the metro from East Falls Church into Rosslyn.

Okay, I'm not normally a metro person. I usually drive because I have to go to meetings at random times to places that are not metro accessible. And taking a cab is not an option. So I'm not used to the swarms of people trying to pile into the metro car at 7AM. It's kind of odd. And kind of bad since there is no AC. After about 20 minutes, it became clear who thought deodorant and cologne was option. Yes, what a wonderful melange of smells to enjoy. But I make it to Rosslyn without hurling.

Meeting at the puzzle palace this afternoon. Walk from my office to the Metro, starting to feel the sweat build up. Get into the metro, again, no AC. Not as crowded, but still hot. I was definitely sweating up a storm by the time I found refuge in the AC of the puzzle palace. The ride back was just as enjoyable.

When I get back to my office, I find out that the shop doesn't hear the noises I'm hearing. And no, these aren't voices in my head. I had other people in my car and they were asking WTF. So they want to keep my car overnight. Not sure why, but the thought of a long metro ride back out to East Falls Church does not appeal to me.

So I walk back up the hill to the metro to go home. Again, the metro has no AC. Plus now it stops randomly in the middle of the tubes. Not once, but several time. I'm wearing my laptop backpack and I can feel it start to melt into my back. I finally escape the metro and then walk the 7 blocks home.

When I get home, I have to peel my dress shirt off my body. Just totally disgusting. And I get to look forward to using it again tomorrow. I'm not sure I could do this every day. I think I'd have to wear shorts or something and bring a change of clothes with me.