I was just telling my boss how happy I am that the transit strike is over and my train actually leaves on time. Hah.
Well, it did leave on time. But when we were about ten minutes from my stop, there was a flash of light overhead, the train ground to a halt and the emergency lights came on.
“Shit,” I said to my friend on the phone. “Shit, shit, shit.”
The conductor made an announcement: They weren’t sure whether it was a problem with the SEPTA power line or Amtrak’s. It would take a while to find out.
“Probably Amtrak. The government can’t do anything right,” I heard someone say behind me. So I started speaking loudly into the phone. My words were loud and clear in the now-quiet car.
“Did you know they fired the president of Amtrakyesterday?” I said, raising my voice. “See, he kept telling them they had to spend money on the infrastructure and why it made sense to subsidize it. Of course the Bush administration would rather just sell it off, so they canned him.
“So yep, I’m sitting here in the dark, thanks to everyone on this train who voted Republican.”
I never pass up an opportunity for a little street theater. After all, it’s educational.
