excerpted from an email i just sent to a mailing list:

> > Anyone else (try to) take the Blue Line to work today?
> Rumor has it that it’s not working. Like. At all.

Well, it certainly wasn’t at the time!

> As for their use of the word ‘delay’, I can’t help but quote Inigo Montoya:
> “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”

I was just telling John that I’m astounded by the number of just plain dumb Blue Line riders. I was stuck at Division on a train to nowhere, and eventually everyone gave up and went upstairs. So, at that intersection, you have your choice of:

1. Division bus, east to the Red Line
2. 9 or X9 bus, south to the Pink/Green lines
3. 56 Milwaukee bus southeast to the Loop
4. Fabled, mythological Blue Line Shuttle bus that shows up completely packed with customers already
5. Queue up at the Cab Stand in the line that wraps around the entire fountain park
6. Walk 4 blocks to North Ave and catch a #72 eastbound to the Red Line
7. Say “screw it, I’m walking” — it’s only 3 miles to downtown

So by the time I gave up (and granted, I stuck it out a long time — secretly, I wanted to ride a train on the opposite-side tracks, which they PROMISED they were going to do, until the track switches turned out to be broken too), basically an hour’s worth of Division stop riders had accumulated, minus a few hardy folks who saw which way the wind was blowing and bugged out before the situation got nuts. All at this one intersection. Which of the 7 perfectly good options were they mostly opting for?

8. Walk a little bit upstream of the cab stand and try to “sneak in” (hint: cab drivers are bastards, but they’re not THAT bastardish. They usually drive past the weasels that do this, at this intersection
when the Blue Line explodes, in my experience, which, come to think of it, it’s sort of sad that I have experience in this area.)
4. Bitch about the Mythological Shuttle Busses.
3. Complain that the 56s are all full, whine, bitch moan.

This worked out great for me, because it meant I hopped on the first X9 (conveniently waiting, with room on board!), zipped on down the road to Lake/Ashland, hopped on a Pink Line that was pulling in just as I got there, and was at work 20 minutes after leaving the Division blue line platform.

There are probably still people queued at that cab stand, though.

ETA: Look, ma! We made the news! (“100 people”? Are you serious? A full 8-car rush-hour train loaded with standees can hold like 1000+ people. Methinks someone lost a zero.) Repeatedly!