Now that I'm working in downtown Washington again, I've been reintroduced to commuting to work by bus and train, an experience I haven't enjoyed since I decided to follow the Internet boom to the suburbs back in the late 90s.
All of a sudden, I have all this time on my hands -- time I used to spend fighting with traffic on the Beltway. Luckily for me, I just unpacked my Mac that contains my music library and finally fired up the iPod I purchased last December.
Needless to say, the commute goes rather smoothly now that my entire music collection travels with me in my pants pocket -- a welcome relief from the wasteland that is Washington radio. Most mornings, I just slip on the train, lean up against the railing near one of the doors, and lose myself in my music -- with an occasional pause to skip around inside my library.
Which is exactly what I was doing this morning when one of my fellow commuters broke one of the unwritten rules of our guild: do not make unnecessary eye contact. I was perched in my usual spot by the door, and he was a couple of rows away reading a magazine and chuckling.
No problem as far as it goes -- it might have been a little weird, but it wasn't like he was creeping me out. So I just looked away.
After which he promptly motioned to me with his hand, and raised the magazine so I could see the cover.
And how could I not smile and laugh.
Look for more sports over the lunch hour.
