Calm, Composed Notes about the TTC

Despite the fact that the TTC shut down today, I was not going to write about it in order to save myself from a rage blackout. However, my lovely friend YS wrote something on Facebook about them that brought my level of anger towards them to a level so high that I think I’ve reached some sort of tranquil, enlightened state. This is what she wrote:

For those of you who were lucky enough to be at the Yonge & Bloor station during rush hour this morning, you may have noticed 2 TTC workers handing out pieces of paper & happily greeting people. What were on those pieces of paper?? They were double sided COLOUR notices to ‘Please move to the end of the platform to improve service’ (let’s forget that ‘electrical/signal problems’ have nothing to do with improved service). The backside of this flyer showing a MAP of the platform, with coloured arrows indicating the direction in which you should move down (you know, in case you haven’t taken the train at Yonge St. since 1954 and have no idea what a platform looks like). WHAT I FAIL TO UNDERSTAND– is how they can afford to employ people to hand out a bajillion (colour) copies of notices that I guarantee no one gave a rats ass about — but are wondering why they are constantly falling into deficit. MY POINT IS: perhaps instead of fare hikes every few years, an external audit of the TTC’s UNNECESSARY expenses is needed. Rant Over.

I’m sure that all of you can draw your own conclusions. I, however, am a pinnacle of serenity and shall not comment. I would like to make a few unruffled and even-tempered observations about today, though. Some of these were observed first hand, and others were stories told by friends who had been stranded downtown.

• Apparently, a boy asked a Special Constable how the shuttle buses worked. The Constable replied by saying, “Diesel. 6 Engine.” The boy said that’s not what he meant. The Constable said, “I figured.”
• To maintain a balanced perspective, I will preface this point by stating that it was very chaotic at the shuttle bus terminal. However, TTC employees were controlling the number of people boarding the buses. There weren’t that many buses at the time, and yet the TTC told people to stop boarding when the middle of the bus still had tons of room. I felt like I was in Titanic, when they weren’t maximizing the number of people who could go on the lifeboats. I, myself, was late meeting a professor. A PROFESSOR PYR(*#PYurh;oiWHFIFJ:SKLFJ—
• My friend SG walked into the station and saw tons of people leaving. He figured something was wrong, and asked a TTC employee if the subway was working. “You think?” was the reply. SG replied, “Well, I haven’t heard anything, I just got here.” The employee replied, “There’s been announcements all afternoon.” “…I just got here.”

But whatever. I am cool as a cucumber. I totally don’t mind all of that, it’s like, totally huh-law-rious. In fact, I will even end with a tiny anecdote about something good that happened on the TTC!!!

You know how people tend to slow down a lot once they get into the doors? Well, those stupid door chimes were going, and this dude was just getting into the doors while I was behind him. I was all like, “Noooooo whyyyyy” but then he SPED UP. HE SPED UP REALLY QUICKLY as he heard the chimes and I had so much room to get in. He was awesome. I wanted to give him a badge or something, or be like “Fifty points to Gryffindor!”

Going to Hogwarts would be sick.

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You might be wondering: Why is there another post already? Did she not just post a blog entry less than an hour ago? Would it not be prudent to wait at least another day?

Well, I shall enlighten you! I am providing you all with a demonstration of procrastination!

Which brings me to ITEM 2: Jewelry from Forever 21

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I hope Mindy Kaling doesn’t sue me.

After spending a productive weekend writing two essays, I thought I’d write about something a little more carefree than Eurocentrism or a child burdened with an inferiority complex. There’s actually been a bit of a Battle of the Sexes, in regards to my blog: The girls want more shopping, the guys want more of the serious business. Well, fortunately or unfortunately, I am not so clever as to pick a specific angle to write my blog from–a logical strategy for success. Instead, my blog will be a variety of pithy little nothings with the occasional depressing (thought provoking?) entry like my last one.

I’ll start with something gender neutral, as the posts that will follow today are going to be a little more related to the gals.

I was actually going to do a post about Fast Dinners a little while back. A lot of us are under stress right now, but we’ve still got to feed ourselves. So, I was going to post these lovely, express meals. I was gonna grab a few recipes from my beloved Nigella Lawson, and take my friend SM’s delicious home made Asian noodle soup idea. I was gonna say how quick and easy it was to make a gourmet scallop & spaghetti squash dinner. I was going to preach and say how we can cook something a little more sophisticated that’s quick–other than KD or pasta and sauce from a jar. But alas, I too have fallen.

This brings me to ITEM 1: Lean Cuisine  Frozen Dinners

The Complications of Being Good

My friend JT does good on a large scale. So does my friend SK. They travel the world and aren’t afraid to tackle it.

Me? My Myers-Briggs profile says that I’m more concerned with my direct environment and how it fits into my belief system. I guess that’s correct, since my actions are not as impressive on a global scale.

Some of you might know about my TTC story that happened a few years ago.*

A man was sitting, holding up his phone. It looked like it was pointed at a little boy sitting near him, and it sounded an awful lot like there were pictures being taken. And it didn’t help that the little boy’s mother looked frightened, trying to block his face with her arms without causing too much of a scene. She either spoke little or no English.

I didn’t want to assume what that man was doing, despite how horrifically obvious it seemed. What if i was wrong? What if he was just playing with his phone? So, after consulting my friend, we casually stepped in between the little boy and the camera’s lens.

The man started to swear, and mutter for us to move out of the way. He never directly addressed us, it was just frightening monologue.

I turned around eventually and said as calmly as possible, “Sir, would you stop swearing?”

I pointed out that he was in public, and that there was a child nearby. And the argument began. All he did was swear over and over again–no words, no defense, just angry profanity.

I was scared, and my hands were literally shaking. I’ve never felt fear like I did that day.

We arrived at Yonge and Bloor station, and everyone got off of the train.

As a different young man left the subway car, he sympathetically looked at me and said, “It’s not worth it.” He quickly walked off, not waiting for my reaction. I felt disgust. Not to enforce stereotypes, but as a much smaller female, I was expecting this active young man to be the one stepping up to the plate–not me. Looking back, I would like to assume that he wasn’t aware that the man had been taking pictures of the child. I hope that he assumed I was just some nosy girl who was yelling at a man who had the guilty pleasure of saying the F word once in a while.

But despite the anger I felt at this young man, I can look back now and understand why he said what he did. If the criminal had pulled out a weapon at me–if he had hurt me, I too would have considered: was it worth it?

But we can’t always be good at our convenience. I’m obviously not suggesting that a good act is only worth reward if our lives are at risk, but we can’t only be good when it requires very little of us.

Even for myself– this TTC story was ages ago. But these things keep happening. I understand that life is tough; bad things happen to good people. That’s just the way it is, I suppose. And we have to look out for ourselves, right? Like that young man had been implying, it might not be worth it. But what is the balance between looking out for ourselves, and watching dumbly as someone gets punched in the face? My co-worker told me a story about her friend, and how a store full of people watched a man randomly assault her. Luckily, when she ran outside of the store to chase the man, another guy helped her catch him. We hear about those stories all the time, don’t we? Especially in foreign countries, we hear about women being sexually assaulted while people walk by with their heads turned. But that stuff isn’t just part of that crazy world outside of our own ‘civilized’ one, it happens in our world as well.

So how much courage are we expected to display? How much bravery is appropriate?

I really don’t know. I’m not asking this from some moral high ground. That incident on the subway was a one time thing. I really don’t know if i could do it again, it was terrifying. And if I had been alone, if I hadn’t been with a friend, what would have happened then? As a person raised in a city, I find that we often pride ourselves on being tough as nails, and coolly indifferent to everything. Things just don’t phase us like they do those country bumpkins!

I guess you can see the point I’m getting towards, regarding the need for a balance.

There are different scales of being good, and different lengths in which we must extend ourselves for each type. In different places, a different degree of ‘being good’ is expected. We are expected to recycle. We are expected to donate to charity once in a while. But then we move from expectation to suggestion. It would be good if we could travel overseas to help the needy. I have the great honor of knowing many friends who have gone overseas to provide aid, but I myself have not. What does that mean? And then we reach the work place, where we no longer have suggestion, but something a little more complicated. The social system at the work place is a unique one. There are many instances in which what is good and deserved is not always recognized, due to the needs of the business. And this business of “being good” doesn’t get any easier in our personal lives. How many times have you been put in the middle of a difficult position between two friends? And you’re unable to act, because it’s not really your place or business–you just happen to be caught up in everything? What about when you witness a crime, and there’s not much time to react. What do you do?

Whenever these subjects come up, there’s often two extreme opposing parties: Those who believe that it is not your duty to save the world, and those who believe that you must always take the opportunity to “do good.” I see validity in both arguments, which is what gives me a headache.

Well, that’s enough for a Monday morning. Cheers to having a good week!

*The TTC is Toronto’s public transporation system, for my US friends.