What's blue and commutes?
June 4, 2007
One of my favorite things about living in Chicago is the complete unnecessity for a car. I ride a train called "The Blue Line" every day. It takes about 20 minutes. It used to be 15, but at some point in the winter they realized the tracks were falling apart and had to institute a slow zone. It doesn't make that much of a difference to me since I use this time to read. My book-completion rate has increased several-fold over the last 8 or 9 months. I'm sure this makes Amazon.com very happy, since it means I need to purchase more books so that I have something to do. Perhaps I'll talk about some of the books I've been reading in another post.
My only regret is that the Blue line runs almost entirely underground. Chicago is famous for its above ground "El" trains which are great for getting a nice view of the downtown as you ride. The blue line is only above ground in a few spots, including my home stop. The view from the platform is spectacular and the subject of this amazing photoshop painting.
As much as I've enjoyed living near the Damen stop, I'm looking forward next year to riding the Brown or Red lines. I rode the Brown line for about 3 weeks while Thomas was in the hospital, and it certainly affords a better view and more reliable service than the Blue.