People in the D.C. area have many complaints about Metro, but with the number of bizarre conversations I overhear and unique experiences I share with other riders, I rather enjoy using the system.
I’ve written before about the guy who got his arm stuck in the door — body outside, cup of coffee inside. There was also the woman who seemed horrified by the idea of interacting with her seatmate, and the challenge I face trying not to laugh at a humorous podcast moment while standing at the front of a packed train car during the morning rush.
But about two weeks ago I had perhaps the funniest experience of my Metro-riding career.
I boarded the train after work and stood near the front, right next to a seat with two people facing me. They were about two feet away, making their conversation quite clear and the need to mask my reaction quite high. It took absolutely everything I had not to burst out laughing when this transpired:
Guy (apparently looking at an email on his phone): “Ugh, it’s my niece’s birthday Saturday.”
Woman: “Oh really? How old is she?”
Guy: “She’s 5.”
Woman: “Aww, that’s nice.”
Guy (very sternly): “No. I don’t get along with her at all.”
Woman: “Huh?”
Guy: “She sucks.”
It’s not often you hear a grown man say a 5-year-old sucks. Thanks, Metro.
Of course, I shouldn’t judge. I’ve never had a 5-year-old niece and there’s always a chance I will think she sucks. Though the early returns suggest that will not be the case:
I am in no way above using a child to make my posts more appealing, nor stealing pictures from my sister-in-law’s Facebook page (thanks Bethany!).
I’ll close this one by pointing out a streak I have going on at the moment. If you look off to the right, you’ll see the number of posts for each month this year — 7,8,9,10,11. I noticed that trend in late April and posted twice on the last day to keep it going. I intend to continue as long as I can. Judging by my experience posting every day in June 2010, things could get difficult by the time we get to December, but I’ll definitely try.