So, people most people grow up in an area where public transportation is a way of life. You want to go across the town, easy! jump on a bus, train or subway and make your way to any place your heart desires. For a small fee, you can go from one suburb to the other and just sit back and relax. Growing up in those area's give you a slight edge over those who grow up in area's that legit has nothing but a random cow, your bike, your friends and family’s charity.
Basically, growing up in areas with no public transportation leaves you with very few options and always on other people's time schedule or you can get on your bike and ride over a mile to a friend’s house just to hang out, until of course you get your license and with any luck, your first new car. I grew up in type of town. There was no public transportation and my nearest friend was 3 miles away.
So here I am a 34-year-old woman and I'm taking a train to the great big city of Chicago all by myself (for the first time). No one to hold my hand and I was totally avoiding the Dan Ryan in the process, it was a win win. I hop on the train at "Hammond" and I take it straight up to Van Buran. I get to Chicago and now I have a mile to get to my work. I happen to run into a friend of my boyfriends, I had met him previously for maybe a few seconds and a bike expo, I felt a little better knowing someone that day. I asked for his guidance as to where to hop on the bus to get to my work and he explained a few things to me about the bus system. I'm going to be honest he lost me after, "No, those go...." I tried to listen and understand but he was throwing a whole bunch of information at me beside the question I had asked "Is this the exit to get on to the bus I need? I think it's 7 or 167." He continued to talk to me and offer me words of wisdom on the bus system, maybe I should have paid more attention. Maybe I shouldn't have got lost following him assuming he was going to lead me to my bus station.
We eventually started talking about my boyfriend and what a great person he was and then his friend says, "Well I turn off here. Talk to you later." I watched him walk away and I was thinking "OH, he wasn't showing me where I could get the bus I need." What a goof! He was giving me all kinds of information and I just assumed he was going to point me in the direction I needed to go and now here I am... somewhere on Van Buran. I looked around for the buses and took a deep breath and marched on, By the time I find the bus I need, I could have made it to work already. So, I hoofed it over a mile to my work, but I did it.
The ride there was uneventful and I assumed the ride home would be as well. After all, I'm a smart 34-year-old woman that can handle everything that is thrown at her, maybe. Excited to leave and with a lack of work for the time being, I headed out of work at 3:30 to make the 4:15 train. I walked to the train as quick as my short little stubby legs would allow and as I got to the train station and verified the train was correct, the train took off as I bust through the doors. Its cool I thought, "I'll catch the next train." 15 minutes, I totally got this. The 4:15 rolls up and I march through the doors take a seat and relax at the thought of being home shortly. As we pull up two the second stop the conductor says, "This train stops at south Chicago and Richton park." My eye grow big, my heart thumps and I jump off the train. I ask the conductor on my way off, "Can I catch the next train that goes to Hammond from here?" "Yep." the doors close between us and I'm stuck in Hyde Park, 34 degrees, nowhere to hide and it's raining. I take a deep breath pull out the train station schedule and see I'm stuck in Hyde park for 45 minutes.
My first reaction is to scream, but as a lady (sort of), I compose myself take a deep breath and find a woman to ask her if I was reading that right. She says yes, that the next one is 45 minutes away. I walk away and lean against a brick column and dig my hands deep into my pockets for warmth. The next train pulls up 20 minutes later and I look at her and she puts her hand up and sways her finger back and forth and mouths the word "No." Somehow this woman seemed to take over a person of authority in my life at that moment and I stood like a little kid and shook my head. I imagine I must have looked like a frightened dog trying to make a break for it. The next train cam 15 minutes later and she says, "this one is mine, yours is next."
I shake my head and say thank you. The next 5 minutes dragged as my face began to go numb and freeze.
The next train came and I jumped on as quick as I could and soaked in all the warmth. As the train got closer and closer to my stop I grew more and more anxious. After all I had left work at 3 to be at my stop by 4:36 and it was now 5:15. I messaged my mom to explain the miss hap and then I messaged my boyfriend to complain about how stupid I had been to just jump on the next train if my stop was the only place these trains had to go.
The train pulls up to Hammond and announces the stop. I grab my stuff cause my stop is the next stop in Hammond. Cause why wouldn't one town have two stops. Hammond stop 1 and Hammond stop 2, right? As the train starts up again I look out the window thankful to be almost home, what an obnoxious way to learn the train system. I grab my stuff excited to be almost to my stop and I seriously watch as the train blows right past my stop and I literally watch my parked car fly out of view. I freak out and think, I need to get off at the next stop. The next stop is Gary Air Port all the doors don't open at that stop and I end up at the next Gary stop.
I find a conductor, I'm so freaked out at this point, I can't hide it even in the slightest. I need to go to that Hammond stop that we just past. "This train doesn't stop at that one, That's east Chicago." "Really the one on Indianapolis is East Chicago, not Hammond." "Yep." He answers. Great! not only could I have been home 45 minutes ago but I've been searching for the wrong stop this whole time! what smart person doesn't look at the name of the train station they park at!? The conductor is nice enough to have the next train wait and ushers me to the train and wishes me luck. Luck? really who needs luck on public transportation?! I do, this country bumpkin who thought taking on Chicago as a place to work would be a clever idea!
As the hot tears ran out of my eyes whether I wanted them to or not, I scolded myself the whole way to the next train stop. I honestly can't think of one word I didn't use to describe my stupidity. I tried to gain composure, as this once cool collected Lady (laughable thought), has turned into a frightened scared little hick moment away from screaming out for mommy. As the train door opens and I step out onto safe ground, I walked swiftly to my car trying to hold in any tears I can while maintaining what little dignity I had left in myself. 4 Hours! it took me 4 hours to get home that day. STUPID STUPID STUPID!!! My boyfriend asked if he needed to come get me or if he could do anything and my only response was, "No, let me pick up my back of crazy that has spilled all over the train, conductor and passengers all by myself." Seriously, I did not want anyone to see me in this condition and I was ok to let it spill out even more in my car as I drove home alone with no one else to see.
BUT! every mistake I could have made that day, I made and I learned. I have since gotten really used to the train, the schedule and where I need to be and when. I do, However, still freak out a little about getting on the wrong train and I have yet to figure out the bus system.
