We're now up to three in the list of wimmin who have Looked At Me Funny while I was riding public transportation. I'm not sure I understand what their problem is. One of them had to crane her neck to glare at me over the head of a rather tall man sitting next to her.

I'm not doing anything. I'm just sitting (or, as the case may be, standing) there quietly. Why are they Lookin' At Me Funny? They always look so cranky. As if just the sight of me gives them a pain.

Hmph. I bathe you know. And comb my hair and put on clean clothes and make-up and everything.

And last night there were other bus-related adventures.

We had a new bus. It even smelled new, which was lovely. And the heat worked, which was equally delightful. But.

When I hopped on the 27 bus, I and the other embarking passengers were informed that the driver was also new. In fact, he'd been relying upon the kindness of the riders (and their desire to get to their own stops) to guide him through the route, since he'd never been in that part of town before and wasn't quite clear on where he was supposed to be going. We had to tell him when stops were coming, where the lanes required him to merge, and when to turn.

I was a bit worried about him when I got off. The only passengers left were two kids sitting far to the back of the bus. I'm not sure they understood their responsibility.

I hope he didn't get lost.

There have been winos and stoners! (At least, there have been drunks.) So my Public Transportation Experience is complete.

There are gorgeous displays of holiday lights that I can now take the time to enjoy. It's nice to ride high above the traffic. You can really see things.

(Today, we also have things going beeeeeep in the server closet here at the office, but I'm pretending I don't hear them.)

Yesterday Buehler needed a power adaptor run over to Alvin at a client's office. Fortunately for me it was within walking distance (only four blocks), otherwise I'd have had to decline. There are drawbacks to not having a car during the day.

After I got home, we walked over to the drugstore so I could pick up prescription refills, then detoured through Whole Foods to grab something for dinner.

I'm becoming quite the experienced pedestrian, aren't I? Saving the planet and hopefully shrinking my butt a tad at the same time.

Sadly, being on foot does leave you open to being abused by passers-by. Last night, for instance, as we crossed a parking lot, a guy stopped his car and hollered out the window at us, wanting to know if we knew that our shirts were blinking.

Dork. Of course we knew. When we're out walking after dark, we wear flashers--the kind you can get to put on your bicycle. We've been mocked for it before (although we also met one young man who informed us that they were "tight"--an expression we chose to interpret as a compliment) but people rarely actually pull over and park to pass remarks.

The point is that they can see us. We're not going to be run over, walking along in our black coats and sometimes dark-colored scarves and hats, because no one sees us coming.

I think it's a good idea. I have no idea why it causes so much hilarity when people see it.