I took the bus home Tuesday, and I thought it would be most fitting to write about my experience that day as part of Calgary Transit's 100 year anniversary. It does not have anything to do with the progress Calgary Transit has made, but the people who lived their lives on that bus.
While I waited for my bus, a person with Down Syndrome came up to me and I presumed he was waiting for the same bus. I can't say I'm the greatest talker in the world, but I guess he tried to talk to me and asked if I was waiting for the bus. I said yes. From what I got, he told me he just got off work and was very excited. I didn't talk to him afterwards. It was a long wait because we are on summer time hours now. 20 minutes had passed and finally the bus came. We got on and by the time we had arrived at the Brentwood station, more people got on.
First, I think the person with the Down Syndrome saw a Chinese guy whom he knew. I guess he tried to converse with him. We have made it far enough in society to accept all peoples and even those with disabilities will not be stopped from taking the transit. I wish our local leaders could see that. There was also a mother with her child on the bus. Single mother or not, that is how she is going to get around with her child. I think I was taken around the city on a bus when I was little too. My grandparents brought me everywhere, even the Devonian Gardens.
We also had another woman accompanying an elderly man onto the bus. He was very slow and had a cane. He was very content with being able to walk by himself, and he started to converse with another lady sitting next to him. The woman he was with was probably his daughter or someone who volunteered to accompany the elderly. I do not know. Another old man sat across from me, but he did not smell very good, had a white bag full of stuff, and definitely had an obsessive compulsive disorder. He was very fidgety.
Older people sat at the front, and there were a fair number of Chinese women just chattering away. Half way through the trip, an Aboriginal guy sat beside me. Nice fellow, but did not smell great. It wasn't too pleasant riding home with him while trying to be polite. As the old man got off his bus, he was too slow and the bus driver started to go. The other woman whom he was having a conversation with started yelling at the bus driver for not stopping. She was visibly upset. The guy who was sitting beside me had moved spots and said that he was also not too impressed with bus drivers stopping and going so fast. He said that he once had been thrust forward and another lady had landed on him. Two girls sitting in front of me (I was on one of the side seats, so really they were just left of me) kept looking back at the guy with the fidgets every 2 seconds. In a matter of minutes, it was time for me to transfer to another bus.
When I first started this post, I had labeled it "All the problems on a bus." As I was writing, I discovered it clearly did not reflect what I wanted to convey. Tuesday showed me that my single bus ride home consisted of what Calgary was. The living organisms inside that bus was Calgary, and that is what local politicians will never see. Each individual has a face and a story to tell. The rich history behind each individual I met that day will never be written anywhere. It may be lost in someone's memories later on.
I wish city hall would ride the bus more and they would learn from just observing. I think I remember Brian Pincott riding on the bus with a bunch of MRC students during the election. I don't think it means anything when there's a camera crew there. It's when you see people for who they are that you will learn from them. I don't know where this post is headed to, but I thought it was so important to tell the story of these people. It's great to talk about transit policies, but at the end of the day, it's the lives that ride the system that matter.
Note: I know some people come onto this blog, but for those who do, take the bus. Share your experiences not with the politicians, but with other people. It's a rich and interesting life when you go to and from on a bus or C-train. This is not about park and rides or whether buses or late, it's really a lot more than that.
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9 comments:
What an interesting post. You seem oddly proud to have slogged your way through a ride on public transit, sitting in judgment of those unfortunate creatures around you, reducing them to mere caricatures. Congratulations. If your goal is to enlighten others, next time you may try to do it without turning your main point into one big backhanded complement. I'm sure that guy with Down syndrome and that smelly guy and those Chinese ladies would appreciate it.
CUSS!
I agree with DownTownDan, would it have been so hard to speak of diversity in a good light or is it the e-politician in you that must make everything a big joke?
I hope those Chinese ladies have a blog and wrote about that inconsiderate jokester.
"Each individual has a face and a story to tell." The problem here is that you didn't listen to any of the stories. You didn't engage in the lives of these people. The post seems to be asking "city hall" to come out and learn but you have not learned anything from observing. Instead you just picked apart the people you saw. You missed the point of your own post.
I think I understand where you were trying to go with this post but you "got off the bus" before you reached your destination. Next time use your talent with words to actually communicate with those living organisms around you. I look forward to reading what you learn from them.
If you really want to see some diversity from Calgary, I invite you to work a 12 hr shift with me driving that bus, everyday is a diverse challenge from that simple task of knowing out of 1000 people in a day that gentleman with down syndrome, or the man who fidgets, who gets on where and when, if they are not there WE actually miss them. It's not pleasant at times, but some days, and it only takes one small event to make what we do as drivers worth all the late nights and early mornings.
Bus rides in a big city can be a "diverse" experience. I don't see anything wrong in calling a spade a spade. There ARE all kinds of people on a bus, some "normal", some smart, some not so smart, etc.
I think if these are your observations, you shouldn't apologize for them. You call 'em, as you see 'em.
Yeah all cross sections of Calgary can be found on the bus... that is all the cross sections besides the Rich.
I will rather speak with an individual with a disability than with you.
It's rather odd isn't it? I mean how you describe the individuals on the bus.
Were you the GIANT white man with three chins who likes to poke fun at ordinary people using the bus? Because I think I saw you and you are in no position to be passing judgment on anyone else. In fact, it appears you may have a little bit of a self esteem issue. Maybe you are riding public transit because you don't have a car, or even worse, lost your license for driving drunk. I mean these are fair judgments aren't they?????
Grow up!!!
Alright. I think this is the point where I need to clarify some things. The oversensitivity on this blog post has reached a limit.
First, I'm Chinese. Sorry to disappoint you.
Second, this is an observational post. Apparently most of you have decided to take it way out of context. If I can't observe and report without being called something, then these comments are uneducated.
Third, yes there are lots of Chinese ladies that talk very loud. No, the guy sitting next to be could have be ANYONE who had a distinct odour on him. Yes, there was a guy with Down Syndrome and a guy with obsessive-compulsive disorder. They were on the bus! How is that in anyway condescending. The point of my blog was to ask that city council look at the people who ride the bus and these are the people we should be fighting for.
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