My Bus Ride and My Wife’s New Camera
Hello. I’m Carlos.
I ride the bus home.
Well actually I ride the train and then the bus home.
Some people look at me funny when I tell them this.
I think it is a stigma that “bus people” have here in the ATL.
But I love putting my headphones on, taking a right out of the Buckhead Church building and walking to the MARTA train station.
I love the homeless guy who tries to sell me a bottle of Crown Royal every Wednesday and Thursday.
I love the group of workers from Foot Locker at Lenox Mall who argue about who the woman liked the most that came in around 3 that afternoon.
I love the business man who reads his paper while secretly listening to Snoop on his iPod.
I love the group that waits at the Dunwoody Marta station for our Cobb County Transit bus.
I am starting to make friends with them.
It is the same crew.
I have not had the nerve to ask them their names yet but we are starting to smile cordially at each other and we always let the lady with the Walmart bag on first.
I love the smell of the bus as I sit in the back and hope someone interesting sits next to me so I can ask them what they are reading.
I love pulling the little cord which prompts the lady that lives in the speaker system of the bus to so elequatly “Stop Requested” in an accent that no one on the bus has.
I love the bus.
I love that my family only has one car and that is forces us to spend more time together.
And I love my wife’s new camera which took these pictures on my bus ride home yesterday.
RAIN IT DOWN
Sweet pictures!
I love being intentional about surrounding ourself with culture. There are too many conveniences today that prevent us from truly living in community.
Brad Ruggles
http://www.bradruggles.com
I love it… if I could take the train everywhere I would, only MARTA doesn’t come out I-85 into Alabama so we are stuck driving a car.
Like your family, my wife and I have actually enjoyed only having one single car between us, for like the last 10 years.
The D300 is a good digital SLR, on top of my list as I am using the first gen D100 right now.
rockstar, i think not.
realstar, more like it.
you have a big heart Carlos, a big heart…
When I lived in Philly I took public transport all the time, unless I was riding my bike. In So Cal, no can do. Once looked at taking LA Metro from Burbank to Pasadena – according to their website it would take me 2-1/2 hours! That’s why I’m on my motorcycle now. Happy commuting.
Having One Car {seesmic_video:{“url_thumbnail”:{“value”:”http://t.seesmic.com/thumbnail/J1NwCr1VLU_th1.jpg”}”title”:{“value”:”Having One Car ”}”videoUri”:{“value”:”http://www.seesmic.com/video/mJDqWwrOZv”}}}
We live in a much smaller city than ATL and our transit system here stinks…literally. You can smell the bus coming from a mile away. Ugh.
so carlos like to ride buses and trains?
So, why have you not come to visit me in New York yet?
this post makes me happy because i love traveling by public transportation here in China. The trains are often crowded and messy, but an awesome experience. The buses are a blast. The only thing you’re missing there in ATL is everyone staring at you and trying to practice their English with you.
I applaud you for living with one car.And for sharing the love.
What kind of camera? Great pics. Love the sneaker one.
And I kinda heart you too.(Heather won’t mind I’m sure)
just clicked on the link…duh…
My name is Jason.
I ride the bus.
I just moved to Chicago to be the Media Arts Director for a church downtown. We sold one of our cars when we moved. I love the same things. I also have not had the nerve to ask the fellow bus riders that get on every day at my stop their names, but we do smile. I love sitting in the back of the bus and watching the people as they get on and off.
I love how it keeps you connected to the poeple.
Love this post, and pictures. We need more Carlos Whittakers in this world. Keep us posted on the friends you make.
My family is also currently on one car. In fact, we’re paying it off TODAY, praise God!
yeah public transportation! love it and live by it here in prague…
just watch out for this CRAZY chick on the ATL MARTA …
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NZtGz_7WI0
I was all good with it til you said you love the smell of the bus. Now I’m a bit concerned.
I lived in Seattle for a period of time while I was in college. I think everyone rides the bus in that city. It was an awesome experience to see the same people everyday and get to experience life outside of my little bubble. I would love to live in a large city with public transportation again, but alas, here in NC everything is built out and not up, so you literally have to drive everywhere. It annoys me badly.
Yo Los, I’m still in SOCal . . . dude the bus . . . trust . . . with 3 boys and a cat it’s just not us .. . not now anyway. who knows what GOD has planned
Rode the train/bus around Chicago for a day not long ago with my best friend. It was amazing how it opened our eyes to the city.
living simply, there’s nothing else like it!
I love that you wear Jack Purcell’s. They are the best. My wife got me a pair with my name stitched on the side for Christmas last year. From the back your kinda look like the leather model. What’s the details on those?
Leather for sure Matt.
maybe i’m nuts or maybe it is because i’ve only ever lived in a no-mass transit city… but when i am able to ride a train, a bus or whatever – it excites me!
i am actually looking forward to it come monday…
Ooohh… My sister just got that camera. It’s so pretty.
Crystal. It should excite you because busses are rad.
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I rode the bus when I worked in a city – it was wonderful – all I had to do was show up – never had to pay attention to traffic, buy gas or look for a parking place! Yes the “regulars” on a bus route are wonderful – you get to have a relationship and it feels weird when someone is missing from the group.
Your wife’s new camera takes great pictures.
I’ve never experienced life on the bus, thanks for sharing!
rode the 1 bus last year a lot and i got the same funny looks when i told people. pity. i still run into some of the folks i rode with and have a friend in the guy, Bernie, who asks so politely to wash my windows because we talked on the bus and i let him borrow my phone when he needed to call his “lady friend” to let her know the bus was running late. and the old ladies are the best! when i helped her on the bus, she held my hand the entire way to my stop and told me about how she had never been helped up the stairs before and that it’s always hard for her to travel. pity is the last feeling someone should’ve felt towards me. i built relationships. and i only spent 30 bucks a month on a pass. it was a sweet time.
Way to go, Carlos! I love the idea of turning the Ragamuffin Soul loose on the community at large. Good things are bound to happen. A couple of things I REALLY loved about your post:
1. You are taking the time to get to know the people around you. And with you it is genuine. You are interested in people and their habits (obviously).
2. You aren’t doing this as an outsider…you are “one of them.” Incarnational.
3. I love that you have your camera clicking at weird moments. Well, Heather’s camera.
4. You are intentional about your friendship…you have plans.
5. You didn’t create a “Ragamuffin Bus Ministry” complete with a logo. You are just doing life.
You are the real deal, Carlos.
Great post but all I came out of it with was this incredible jealousy over the Nikon. That’s wring on so many levels….
Cobb County Transit rules.
I rode it every workday, from the Marietta Square to the 10th Ave MARTA, to Lenox Mall.
I’m being tortured by Nikon D300′s. They’re everywhere. Why does it make my Olympus E-510 feel 2nd rate? It’s only the name, it’s only the name.
Oh, and I had a strange dream about you last night. I twittered it, but you don’t follow me so you didn’t get it. Get it? I dreamed that Sunette and I flew out to California to visit you, and pay your mortgage, and play basketball. We schooled.
your bus station isn’t ghetto like ours.
Speaking of riding the MARTA …
http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=93283
Have you had the pleasure of this young lady’s acquaintance?
I LOOOVE THE CCT! and Marta, I have a bus family that I ride with every day…
Uno Coche {seesmic_video:{“url_thumbnail”:{“value”:”http://t.seesmic.com/thumbnail/I8p4WBYBuj_th1.jpg”}”title”:{“value”:”Uno Coche ”}”videoUri”:{“value”:”http://www.seesmic.com/video/6RJfdB9m0K”}}}
good post =)
wow and heather got an amazing camera!
They say that in 2014 a rail system could be in place to take me from downtown Tulsa to Broken Arrow where I live. The buses don’t run close to my house….I’m sad b/c you’ve got a cool opportunity to meet people. So, I will most likely buy a motorcycle this summer. Maybe I’ll join a leather-clad group of bikers who drink crappy beer and smoke cheap cigarettes…that way I’ll meet cool people too…maybe they’ll even try to sell me some CR.
Its funny because I just rode the bus to Seattle for the first time this last week to take some photos since my car broke down. It was so exciting I even rode it again this last Saturday!
But the bus system works best when you don’t have an agenda to get somewhere. I’m a big fan of casual hopping from bus to bus not knowing where I’m gonna end up