December 2, 2024 Breaking News, Latest News, and Videos

Hot Flash: Go Metro. By Yourself.

Barbara Bishop

 I did something very brave last weekend. I took the Metro BY MYSELF to meet a friend to watch the USC/Stanford game this past weekend.

My friend is a very nice guy I met a few months ago who lives in Anaheim. He has season tickets for the USC games. We don’t live very close to each other; I live in Westwood.

He proposed what he thought was the coolest idea; he would take Metro from Anaheim, and I would take it from Santa Monica and we could meet at the stadium!

I thought to myself; holy crap! I’ve never taken the Metro. Especially alone. In fact, in my 50-plus years, I’ve taken public transportation only a few times in my life, and most of those trips were on the shuttle buses to the Hollywood Bowl!

I decided to “man up” and agreed to the adventure. I had a tap card that AARP had recently sent to me and I put it in my wallet just in case, if ever there was a need to use it.

I drove to Santa Monica, the only location I was familiar with, and made my way down to the train station. I took a right turn where it said “no right turn”; it was the only way to get to the parking lot I wanted to park in. Sorry SMPD.

The 4 p. m. train had just pulled up to the station; I quickly paid the parking attendant and trotted up the stairs to the train. I nervously got my tap card out of my wallet. What if it didn’t work? Where would I get a tap card? Would I miss the train? Thankfully I sailed through, my AARP tap card working flawlessly.

I boarded the train, and as far up front as I could. What kind of people would be on this train? Would I be the only one that was by myself? I clutched my handbag like my grandmother used to do when we took the subway to downtown in Chicago. At that moment, I felt like my grandmother.

People completed boarding the train. I looked around, sizing everyone up, mainly out of fear. My fear dissolved quickly; 90 percent of the people on the train were wearing USC t-shirts, hats and other Trojan paraphernalia. Whew! I felt safer.

The train started to move. The front seat that I had chosen was really the very back seat and I was sitting backwards! I quickly moved to a seat that was front facing.

I called my friend Walt several times; letting him know I was on the train, and asked him at least twice about which stop I should get off the train.

We started the journey to the Coliseum, making route stops along the way. I was beginning to relax, releasing the tight clutch I had on my purse.

The stops that the train had were cool – one was a station not too far away from my apartment in Westwood. I began to think of all the places I could go on the train, avoiding the crushing traffic jams that I encounter every day, just getting from Westwood to Santa Monica.

With each stop we were getting closer to my destination. No altercations. Good.

Two more stops, and I was supposed to get off and take a left. Or was it a right?

Turns out that in my excitement to make sure I got off at the right stop, I disembarked two stops too early. I walked through a city of tailgaters, past the museums, and finally arrived at the Rose Garden and the fountain where Walt had indicated we would meet. I waited at our meeting spot a few minutes; Walt arrived soon thereafter.

As we made our way to our seats, Walt informed me that anyone who did not have a see-through purse needed to check the purse outside of the stadium. Are you fcking kidding me? After clutching my bag the whole time on the train, I had to check it? I ended up much less pissy when a guy from the purse check in area gave me a plastic bag for me to be able to carry my valuables. Like my makeup bag.

Would I take Metro again? Hell yes.

And by the way, USC kicked butt!

Expo Line Turned Over

Tags: , , , , , in Opinion
<>Related Posts

SM.a.r.t Column: It’s Time To Inspect Balconies

November 24, 2024

November 24, 2024

About nine years ago, a fifth-floor balcony in a Berkeley apartment building collapsed, tragically killing several students gathered on it...

S.M.a.r.t Column: Your City is Broke

November 18, 2024

November 18, 2024

On December 10, the new City council will be seated fresh from their dominant win in the recent elections. There...

SM.a.r.t Column: Moving Ahead to the Future

November 10, 2024

November 10, 2024

As we write this, the election results are still trickling in. We’ll leave the deep analysis to others, but the...

Opinion: Fact Check: Why Vote Yes on Measure QS

November 1, 2024

November 1, 2024

Despite living in a famously progressive region, Santa Monicans are not immune from the same political misinformation and disinformation that...

SM.a.r.t Column: Lack of Oversight and No Accountability

October 31, 2024

October 31, 2024

S.M.a.r.t. periodically invites guest columnists to write opinion articles on topics of particular interests to our readers. Below is an...

SM.a.r.t Column: “Help! I’ve Fallen, and I …!!”, Cries Santa Monica!

October 25, 2024

October 25, 2024

Maybe fallen, but slipping for sure from being a desirable beachfront community that served all equally, the local residents who...

SM.a.r.t. Column: Vote

October 13, 2024

October 13, 2024

In a polarized country or City every vote counts. Regardless of which side of any issue or candidate you support,...

SM.a.r.t Column: Fact-Checking Election-Season Windbaggery

October 6, 2024

October 6, 2024

Claim: The state is requiring Santa Monica to build 9,000 apartments.Answer: Partially true, partially false. Santa Monica has a pretty...

SM.a.r.t. Column: Public Safety and Traffic Enforcement Can Help Save Lives and Revitalize Santa Monica’s Economy

September 29, 2024

September 29, 2024

We wholeheartedly endorse the candidates below for Santa Monica City Council. Their leading campaign platform is for increased safety in...

SM.a.r.t Column: Crime in Santa Monica: A Growing Concern and the Need for Prioritizing Public Safety

September 22, 2024

September 22, 2024

By Michael Jolly Over the past six months, Santa Monica has experienced a concerning rise in crime, sparking heated discussions...

SM.a.r.t Column: Ten New Commandments

September 15, 2024

September 15, 2024

Starting last week,  the elementary school students of Louisiana will all face mandatory postings of the biblical Ten Commandments in...

SM.a.r.t Column: Santa Monica’s Next City Council

September 8, 2024

September 8, 2024

In the next general election, this November 5th, Santa Monica residents will be asked to vote their choices among an...

SM.a.r.t Column: Part II: The Affordability Crisis: Unmasking California’s RHNA Process and Its Role in Gentrification

September 2, 2024

September 2, 2024

Affordability: An Income and Available Asset Gap Issue, Not a Supply Issue (Last week’s article revealed how state mandates became...

SM.a.r.t Column: Part 1: The Affordability Crisis: Unmasking California’s RHNA Process and Its Role in Gentrification

August 26, 2024

August 26, 2024

In the world of economic policy, good intentions often pave the way to unintended consequences. Nowhere is this more evident...

SM.a.r.t Column: They Want to Build a Wall

August 18, 2024

August 18, 2024

Every once in a while, a topic arises that we had previously written about but doesn’t seem to go away....