Saturday, November 18, 2006

snapshots from this week's commuting

This makes me want to agree on our safety word...
That, or demand my lawyer...

And habeas corpus.

This week several Red Line stops with CharlieCard gates went "completely automated." That is, the old booths were covered up, with their windows tinted and blacked out. What are they now? Storage sheds... Soda fountains... Tanning booths... TARDISes...?
Say... does that look like a gun port to you...?

Maybe the WOPR is running the show now...

Have you noticed that there are wheelchair-friendly CharlieCard gates guarding wheelchair-unfriendly T station exits?
Welcome, wheelchairing commuters! Exit here to advance to your destination!

Not! Ha! Got you now! No elevator for you!

Maybe their installation is regulated? Required? In response to the intersection of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the "largest population on the planet" honor the United States seems to have earned.

Hey, Christmas tree beached in the Common...
Poor thing... Science has yet to determine the cause of this phenomenon, but the beached Christmas tree seems to be increasing in frequency over time, peaking each year in the winter, regardless of geography. Tragically, this peculiar occurrence is almost always fatal for these majestic creatures, as they are unnaturally uprooted, relocated and dressed and decorated against their wills.

Deck the frickin halls.

Keep on keepin on~

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

The T Stations look like they were designed by Cylons.

And what's with this Charlie-T stuff? Is it in relation to that old song? I'm so out of the "Boston Loop."

Too bad about the Horrorfest. I wouldn't mind seeing some of the movies, although I have the feeling that I'd be a bit underwhelmed. Too many of these films nowadays (grumpy old man mode) are more about gross out stuff. Saw didn't do anything for me, and Hostel (get it, a play on words!) was just sad.

cabinboy said...

Yeah, the Charlie cards are a reference to the old song, "Charlie on the MTA." I forget now who originally sang it, but it's lodged in my memory most recently as performed by Malcolm's dad with a barbershop quartet-y feel on MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE.

There was this weird T ad (a poster in the subway cars) over a year ago that advertised the Charlie pass in some early prototype form, maybe for visitors/tourists? I'm not sure. Anyhow, I thought It was odd because it seemed to be written mostly in what I thought was Vietnamese? And I thought that it was a poorly thought out bit of advertising, aimed for whatever reason (maybe it was on a particular line of the T, I can't recall which) at Vietnamese, promoting a card going by the name of "Charlie."

Hrmm... I wonder if there's any trace of that online.

I haven't had any trouble adjusting to the new passes, but I think there are some issues with how universal they are for commuters who use more than the T, i.e. the bus and commuter rails.

Exciting, no?

In completely unrelated news...

Huzzah for FORBIDDEN PLANET! =)

Anonymous said...

I didn't get the Charlie connection until you blatantly pointed it out. Good call, racism high five!

Sorry, I've been watching a lot of Scrubs recently, and "The Todd" does a lot of high-fiving in there...

And I'm glad you got the Forbidden Planet. It's hard to go wrong with that movie, I love it.