My mind, and the places it goes

So, it's that time of year, when the students return (like swallows to Capistrano) to Boston. And thus it is time for yet another "gnomi explains it all" post. Not that any of the people this post is directed toward will actually see it, but it'll make me feel better.

1. You see that thing in front of you? It's a Really Big Street. Running across it while those fast-moving things (we call them "cars") are barrelling down at you will hurt you more than it will hurt the cars.

2. Moving trucks, while useful, should not completely block any of the following: driveways, sidewalks, crosswalks, intersections. We know you have to move your stuff. However, some of us have to live here, too.

3. Speaking of crosswalks, please learn how to use them. No, really. They're not there purely for the amusement of line painters.

4. Ah, the T. Yes, it's a subway system. Yes, it gets you and your obnoxious friends from place to place. But it is not solely yours. The other commuters might want to be able to, say, read their newspapers free of your loud, obscene comments at 7:15 in the morning. Or even at 5:30 at night.

5. Also, you see those big signs in the T stations that say "There is no smoking permitted on MBTA property?" Those do apply to you. And they apply regardless of what you're choosing to smoke. I'm just saying.

6. We know you're eager to get on the train. But you and your aforementioned obnoxious friends are just making it harder for everyone if you're blocking the door, keeping those of us in the train from getting out. This also applies to people blocking the doors when inside the train; if you move out of the doorway, people will be able to get off the train and you will get to your destination faster.

7. While we're talking trains and etiquette, let's tackle getting to and from those trains. You see the escalator? It comfortably accommodates two people per stair. But here's the deal. Stay to the right if you want to stand and let the moving stairs propel you upwards. Stay to the left if you wish to walk up the stairs. This is established local tradition, and there's no need for the commuters to have to slalom purely because you and your aforementioned obnoxious friends can't be bothered to notice all the people standing to the right of the stairs.

8. Bicycles are great. We're all for them. In fact, we have bike lanes on some of our major streets. Please, however, pay attention to the following important fact: Bicycles are subject to the same laws as the cars if you're riding on the street (which, for the most part, you should be; many municipalities have laws against riding on sidewalks). This means that you have to stop when the light is red and allow the pedestrians to walk. This does not mean that you should barrel through the crosswalk and curse out the pedestrians who have the gumption to get into the crosswalk when you want to be there (despite the fact that they, not you, have the light).

So, welcome to Boston. Keeping these things in mind will make your life much simpler and will also prevent me from thwacking you with my elbow as I strive to get to or from work.

Thank you,
The management.

*Or, whenever I remember to post it or am reminded to post it.

The Cambridge police have started ticketing cyclists who violate traffic laws.

Me, I say it's about time. I've complained about cyclists in the past (see point 8), and with luck the ticketing will make some people stop their obnoxious behavior.

(yes, I seem to be Posty McPostalot today. There may or may not be another one later today in which I attempt to lead you all in song. It depends on how the rest of my morning goes, I think.)

The MBTA is busing between Kendall Square and Park St. stations on the Red Line this morning due to a disabled train on the Longfellow Bridge.

Please allow extra time, as they're turning trains around at Kendall and holding trains at Harvard and Central to allow for the turnaround time.

I arrived at Harvard station this morning at 7:15 and got to work at 7:45. This is usually a 10-minute trip at most.

-- This evening's commute home was *nuts* (red line Kendall-Harvard, then 66 bus), with weird unexplained delays (including sitting for 10+ minutes at Central). I don't think it was related to the fire that hit Downtown Crossing-Park St., but it might've been.

-- Got off the bus in time for it to start drizzling again. While they predicted we'd get a real soaker of a storm in the 6:30 PM region, it never seemed to manifest.

-- Am alone for the next three nights (tonight and the next two) due to mabfan being out legislating. I'm getting freelance work done, and some knitting, and at some point I'll figure out what we're doing for Shabbat meals, and that'll be what I'll do Thursday (causing those meals to manifest, I mean).

-- gnomi's Easy Nachos (for which mabfan has another name) are not dinner, but they make a good "I had a large lunch but now I want a snack" snack.

-- Breaking News: Brookline Town Meeting just a bit ago passed the budget item funding the RFID tags.

-- I appreciate having friends, new and old, who recommend good books I never would've known about otherwise.

As of yesterday/this morning, there is construction going on in Harvard Square that affects bus routes. The advisory only lists the 66 as being affected, but I saw the 86 also taking an alternate route this morning, and I cannot imagine that they are the only buses being rerouted.

The bus driver on my 66 this morning said that the rerouting would be in effect for the next 8 weeks. From what I experienced this morning, my main advice is to leave extra time if possible.

Friday

-- Worked until 1:30 PM (my usual early-Shabbat Friday leaving time)
-- Ran assorted (blessedly short) errands
-- Got home ~2:30 PM
-- Did prep-for-Shabbat stuff (set up hot plate, set up lights and Shabbat alarm clock, water plants, etc.)
-- Lit Shabbat candles early (with intention that Shabbat didn't actually start until, well, Shabbat-starting time)
-- Started walking with mabfan to shul for Mincha, Kabbalat Shabbat, and Ma'ariv
-- About 2 blocks in, was encountered by shul-member-in-car, who offered us a ride. Yay, no hill-walking.
-- Davened, then shmoozed so we wouldn't be too early to dinner
-- Walked with two guys from shul back to their place, as our dinner invitation was to their next-door neighbors
-- Had excellent dinner with lovely and lively conversation with our hosts and their other guests
-- Got home ~10:45 PM or so
-- Went to sleep not long thereafter

Saturday

-- Got up, put lunch food on hotplate, got ready for shul
-- Went to shul, saw lots of folks (some of whom asked after my whereabouts last Shabbat)
-- Hung out at kiddush for a while, shmoozed with folks
-- Eventually went home, as we had lunch guest coming
-- Lunch guest (coming from opposite direction from us) and we arrived at home approximately same time. Good timing all around.
-- Yay for food being hot on our arrival home. Made salad (thanks to donated bag-o'-salad and tomato) very quickly
-- Ate, shmoozed, good time was had by all
-- After lunch, went to visit friends. Stayed with them through Havdallah.
-- After Havdallah, went home, changed for evening out.
-- Waited ridiculous amount of time for cab to actually pick us up. Good there was a reception-y thing prior to start of event.
-- Event in question was performance by Yisrael Campbell. Was very funny.
-- After event, dessert bar. Hung out there shmoozing, then got ride home from shul members also in attendance.

Sunday

-- Got up. Noted presence of snow. Did not feel it qualified as "flurries" as advertised, unless "flurries" now including "1-3 inches."
-- Spoke to lcmlc and finalized plans for my visit out there.
-- Helped mabfan get ready to head out to HRSFA reunion.
-- Got ready to head out myself, heard from mabfan that bus still hadn't arrived.
-- Left home and saw bus coming from Coolidge Corner through haze of flying snow.
-- Got on bus (eventually... took the bus a much longer time than usual to come up from Coolidge Corner), called mabfan to tell him bus was heading his way.
-- Met up with mabfan on bus, traveled together to Harvard Square
-- Continued on to Alewife, where Abba met me (in the AbbaTaxi) and drove me to Chez ImaAbba
-- Visited with lcmlc and Abba and cooked lots of food for them (lasagna-ziti hybrid; salmon dish with sauteed veggies; Santa Fe salad), and then shoveled their stairs and walk (and a path to the mailbox).
-- Came home, had dinner, watched some TV, did other stuff I'm not remembering, went to sleep.

Am in the office today; my brain hasn't 100% caught up with me yet, but I've been productive nonetheless.

So, it's that time of year, when the students return (like swallows to Capistrano) to Boston. And thus it is time for yet another "gnomi explains it all" post. Not that any of the people this post is directed toward will actually see it, but it'll make me feel better.

1. You see that thing in front of you? It's a Really Big Street. Running across it while those fast-moving things (we call them "cars") are barrelling down at you will hurt you more than it will hurt the cars.

2. Moving trucks, while useful, should not completely block any of the following: driveways, sidewalks, crosswalks, intersections. We know you have to move your stuff. However, some of us have to live here, too.

3. Speaking of crosswalks, please learn how to use them. No, really. They're not there purely for the amusement of line painters.

4. Ah, the T. Yes, it's a subway system. Yes, it gets you and your obnoxious friends from place to place. But it is not solely yours. The other commuters might want to be able to, say, read their newspapers free of your loud, obscene comments at 7:15 in the morning. Or even at 5:30 at night.

5. Also, you see those big signs in the T stations that say "There is no smoking permitted on MBTA property?" Those do apply to you. And they apply regardless of what you're choosing to smoke. I'm just saying.

6. We know you're eager to get on the train. But you and your aforementioned obnoxious friends are just making it harder for everyone if you're blocking the door, keeping those of us in the train from getting out. This also applies to people blocking the doors when inside the train; if you move out of the doorway, people will be able to get off the train and you will get to your destination faster.

7. While we're talking trains and etiquette, let's tackle getting to and from those trains. You see the escalator? It comfortably accommodates two people per stair. But here's the deal. Stay to the right if you want to stand and let the moving stairs propel you upwards. Stay to the left if you wish to walk up the stairs. This is established local tradition, and there's no need for the commuters to have to slalom purely because you and your aforementioned obnoxious friends can't be bothered to notice all the people standing to the right of the stairs.

So, welcome to Boston. Keeping these things in mind will make your life much simpler and will also prevent me from thwacking you with my elbow as I strive to get to or from work.

Thank you,
The management.

Last week, I asked people to tell me what to photograph. Here's the first bunch...

( This way to the photos! )

This morning, I took the bus, as usual, from Harvard St. to Harvard Square and then transfered to the Red Line to go to Kendall. Or, at least, that was the plan. I got the bus (after a longish, Very Cold wait) and used my Monthly Link Pass just fine. But when I got to Harvard (Church St. entrance), the automated fare gate wouldn't read my pass properly. It read my Link Pass as a Stored Value Card. Not only that, it told me it didn't have sufficient value on it.

Thank goodness, thought I, there was an attendant there. She opened the gate for me and asked me what was wrong.

"It's reading my pass as a Stored Value Card, even though it's a Monthly Link Pass," I said. "And it worked just fine when I boarded the bus a bit ago."

"Well, that's the problem," she said. "You can't use it so soon after just using it."

"But I do it every morning. And I know that the threshold to reuse is 15 minutes, and it's been much more than that," I said.

"Well, I can't tell you anything until I see the pass."

Just then, another official -- one I've known for a while -- walked past.

"How're you?" she asked.

"Pretty well, except that my Link Pass is registering as a Stored Value card and claims I don't have enough value on it."

"Oh," she said. "That happens sometimes. Don't worry about it." And then she headed into the official's booth, so I headed down the stairs to get my train.

But it bothered me that my pass wasn't working properly, so I called the T's Customer Service line and told the person who answered it the above story (up to the bit about the second official.)

"Oy. I don't know what sorts of idiots they're hiring there," the phone person said. She then transfered me to the Automated Fare Collection office. Where I got someone's voicemail, so I left a message.

I then called the T's complaint line to complain about the disinformation that the (first) official at Harvard was passing on. And the line rang and rang and rang and rang, with no voice mail or human picking up.

Is this sort of treatment what they meant when they said the improvements will bring "enhanced" customer service? If so, I'd like my old, classic, benign neglect back, please.

ETA: A follow-up