8/1/11: Should've taken the D train

The C train is the closest one to my house, but I can also take the D train, which is far more reliable but involves a longer walk home.  Normally, I'll take whichever comes first, but it looked like rain, so I decided to chance the C train.  Big mistake.

It's always a game to see who can get closest to where the door will open without pushing another passenger onto the rails.  The heat in Government Center is bad enough, but with hundreds of passengers closing in on each other to get the one seat that will remain after the doors open, it becomes a sauna.  Still, I stuck it out, only to watch three E trains come in a row.  The E train is the red-headed stepchild of the MBTA, since it is the only westbound train that doesn't go to Kenmore.  And they come almost as infrequently as the C train.  Seeing three of them go by in a row is the T equivalent of hitting red 17 times in a row at the craps table.

In all, I watch four E, three D and three B trains go by before the C train showed up.  Needless to say, it was packed.  The proverbial sardines analogy doesn't even come close to describing the situation on the train.  I'm pretty sure I got goosed by an 87-year old man.  After a half hour of bumping and grinding, we made it to Kenmore, where the Red Sox traffic emptied onto the streets.  That's six stops in 30 minutes, for those who are keeping count.

The other problem with being the first C train after a long absence is the inevitable "This train will run express to Cleveland Circle."  Normally, there is another C train right behind me.  Not this time.  The plus side is that the next train that finally showed up smelled like onion bagels, so it was a pleasant ride until the guy in the tank top stuck his armpit in my face.

Just another day on the green line.