on nyc subway
it's the best and worst metro system. the soul of the city. the dump of the city. it does not care who you are, where you've come from, how you got there - all walks of life still use it. it is always there but never when you need it. it pops up in almost every casual first time meeting ... oh sorry the N was delayed, how are you getting back/get here? ... as some of y'all may know, i recently moved into the city proper. unfortunately, my morning commute is so packed that i can no longer read. so here are some observations that i've gathered while staring at my own company's ads.
objectively, the only new information i've gained in the past few weeks is how to maximize efficiency on my morning commute - which i'm still working on. every time i left for work, i treated the commute itself as a science experiment, tested variables and logged results. i first started out on routes, figuring out which combination of local, express, transfers, and walking led to which consequences and evaluated the tradeoffs. then it became which routes at which time and with what weather made the mose sense. then it became optimizing where stand on the origin platform to lessen the time spent at the destination platform. then it became figuring out which staircases, streets, escalators have the shortest time to office. it's all absurdly useless information that now hangs in my mind.
my commute takes me through a wide spectrum of people, particularly when i aggregate results from the above experiments. i've seen 8 year old kids go to school with their parents on their first day. bankers in full suits drenched in sweat standing in an AC-less subway car. families covered in I <3 NY stumbling from the subway jerking as it leaves the station. people trying to hustle and sell candy. performers who come in with speakers, drop a 16 bar verse, collect money, and dip to the next car. it's all so lively and amusing. almost as if it is a giant social experiment.
there are so many unspoken rules on the subway. most revolve around not pissing off other passengers. the less you are in the way of others the better. sometimes it feels like a giant decision tree flow chart. i should not stand against the right side door for this upcoming stop because a large amount of people will get on/off. so i should switch to the left side door, but only if it possible to move, else i should remain on the right side door and temporarily get off at the next stop. i should not take up an extra seat with my suitcase/backpack. i should not play music on a speaker unless its from a concert and the whole cab is doing an impromptu encore. i should always wear deodorant as to not annoy other riders when i inevitably sweat. i should open the emergancy door for other people who ask (iykyk). this is subway etiquette. this is nyc. love it or hate it, it connects us all quite literally and figuratively.
be good,
simple