The Art of Transit

My first night at work was last Saturday. And by night, I mean catching the bus at 1:15 and being at Planet Hollywood from 3 to after midnight, taking the 1:34 train to South Orange and hanging at the station until about 3am. You can do the math...

I've had the "pleasure" of experiencing all aspects of the NJ Transit the past few days. For my Saturday shift, I caught a bus into the City. I was conveniently able to walk to the bus stop, which was excellent considering the Andersons were gone for the day. So there I was waiting about ten minutes early for the 1:08. Waiting. Waiting. Finally, up pulls the number 77 to NYC. People get off, I go to get on, then the driver says "No miss, I'm on the way to Morristown." Uhhhh.... now what? I sit and deal with my panic rechecking and rechecking my bus schedule, trying to figure out what I'm going to do. Please tell me, I am not going to call in an 1 1/2 hours before my very first shift! Then, beyond hope of hope, up pulls another number 77!! The bus pulls up at 1:23- the time it stops at the arena.... Apparently, I didn't know that my stop was the "arena" stop. I didn't take into consideration the large ice skating "arena" to my left. I was born a blond folks!! Not my fault! The bus was cold and the stop and go in traffic got old quick. I did get to go through the Lincoln Tunnel! All I could picture was Will Smith destroying things, racing cars and such. I was impressed that the buses had their own lane and were able to dodge City traffic and easily glide into the Port Authority bus terminal. The terminal is located 2 blocks from Planet Hollywood, much more convenient than my 10+ block walk from Penn Station when I take the train. So I got into Times Square in time to go to Walgreen's and get a lock before getting to Planet Hollywood with time to spare.

Work was exciting. There were a lot of young people who are pursuing acting/ singing/ dancing/ DJing/ nothing like what I'm pursuing careers. Everyone seems to get along and I'm excited to make friends and go out with them! If you've never been to a Planet Hollywood, it is covered in movie paraphernalia. Planes and cars are hanging from the ceiling. There's clothing and costumes from everything: Star Wars to Mama Mia (Broadway version) to Twilight. I find myself staring at artifacts as I walk around the restaurant. That is, if I'm not distracted by the bumpin' music videos cast across TVs surrounding the main dining room. It is quite the atmosphere. I must admit, I thought it was all hype. I assumed celebrities only showed up for publicity stunts. I was proved wrong my first night when none other than Oprah Winfrey has a private party upstairs!!! Now don't get too excited, I didn't even see her, but I still think it is neat I was in the same building.

There is one issue with my glorious job: I live in New Jersey. The last train runs at 12:34 (weekdays) and 1:34 (weekends), not exactly convenient for a job where I'm scheduled until 1:00 (weekdays) and 2:00 (weekends). That is after the last train runs for those of you who are still calculating. But my managers have been awesome. They let me out a little early so I can make the train, and once I'm done with training, I will be working days.

So my Saturday night, Greg lets me go at 12:50. I am booking it down 7th Avenue because I have 15 minutes to cover 10 blocks to get to the last train out of NYC. Sweating, I run down the stairs into the station to find that the last train doesn't leave until 1:34. I laugh at myself and dehydrated, I go to the pharmacy to grab a drink while I wait. On the stairs, I casually search for words in my word search book when I notice everyone in the waiting area migrate to Gate 9. "Must be the train" I think, as I see the time is 1:31 and I follow the suffocating crowd down the small escalator. I get to the platform and notice this train is going to Trenton. To my right, I see the train going to Dover, aka the train I need. The time is 1:33. Now it must be explained that when I say "to my right," I mean past the pit between platforms where pedestrians cannot cross for various safety reasons. I take off sprinting up two flights of stairs through the waiting area and back down another couple flights, my purse and other bag swinging wildly at my sides. The train worker smiled at me as I boarded. I'm sure he cracked up as soon as I turned my back. But I made it...

I stayed the night in South Orange with Mallory. We had breakfast at Bonte Bistro on Sunday. It was delicious! Nutella filled waffles, mine with bananas on top, hers with blueberries. Awesome! If you have never had Nutella, do me a favor and go get a jar. It is a chocolate-hazelnut spread about the consistency of peanut butter and usually, found in the same aisle. It comes from France and is traditionally eaten on hard breads such as a baguette. I love it on strawberries, bananas, pancakes,... hell, it's me people, I eat it by the spoonful. The point is: try Nutella. It's yummy!

I worked again yesterday. I chose to take the train because Matt was home to take me to the station and the train left later than the bus. All very practical and easy. Not! I am riding and relaxing, studying for my Planet Hollywood Menu A test, when the guy on the intercom mumbles something that is hard to understand, especially since I'm not really listening. Then at Newark, a mass of people get off the train. "Huh, that's odd and never happens. Everyone always goes into the City." I become a wee bit worried. I become very worried when the intercom announces we're at the last stop which is Hoboken, New Jersey. "Hoboken! I still need to get across the river and into the city and I have no idea where I am!!!" Luckily, a nice train guy pointed me to the PATH- the New Jersey/NYC connecting subway- which I learned took me to 33rd Street. I had a brisk walk to work but still made it to Planet Hollywood in plenty of time. And the upside of all this stressful travel is that I'm learning a lot about the public transportation system as well as the area between Penn Station and Times Square.

Last night, the managers let me out early again, and I caught the train just fine. I had a small scare when Matt called to tell me I didn't get off my train, but there was apparently a train about 10 minutes before mine, and I was right about my location. Needless to say, I've had an experience or rather experiences on the NJ Transit this week. I only hope I can catch the bus as scheduled tomorrow. Wish me luck!