Almost every day I am subjected to the discomforts, as some say, of Chicago's transportation systems one way or another. Every morning at exactlythe same time and every afternoon, same time, I take the "wonderful" transportation bandwagon called the El.....
Before i moved to the city i was warned about the "smells" and the people I would encounter on a daily basis.
"Don't forget your mase, Kim..."
"Don't make eye contact, Kim..."
"Don't talk to strrangers, Kim...."
So I thought, keep yourself distracted, listen to music, keep to yourself....
I find this so HARD to do....
When i step on the train and see a new group of people, i dont look at them like Villans, i look at them like people with stories; people with lives; people with families; people with emotions.
A friend of mine got me addicted to reading the stories on Craigslist Missed Connections (yes, i know...but some of them are HILARIOUS) and when i read the stories of people "smiling", "talking" and "passing" by on the El.......thats where the romanticism comes in.
I mean imagine walking on the train and seeing that guy or girl you have never seen before and instantly...attraction..........Do you ponder at the fact that you might never see them again and look away?; or do you send a smile their way? Its romantic, isnt it? i suppose the romance also comes from taking the risk on a total stranger. Even if you are happy with your life as is and the people in it, a new friend is always a risk and sometimes a delight. This new "friend" could have more crazier stories then you do! :)
The risk also comes in who these people are. I always say the El is the only place a married man can get thsi close to me without it being considered cheating on his wife. Now being "sardined" in next to a man that smells like musk compared to the man that smells like he just left the gym are two different things......but you get the point.
it might just be the holiday coming up that makes me feel like writing a blog like this, but i doubt it...im a heartless romantic. I see romance in everything....unfortunately!
