Smash The Clock

i made my first trip ever to the west coast this weekend. friday was an endless chase after the sun. the timing of the cheapest flight i could find on priceline required me to get up at 5:30 am and catch a cab because i didn't want to leave my margin of safety to the tender loving care of the MBTA. i squeezed into a tin can with a lot of other people and flew through the air to california. that part of the trip was made tolerable only by reading one and a half early heinlein novels. after arriving at the san jose airport, i caught a free shuttle to the Caltrain station.

the Caltrain commuter rail blows the MBTA commuter rail out of the water. Caltrain offers an intelligently designed system that doesn't leave one with a persistent ache in the lower back and a lessened affection for the rest of humanity. buying a ticket from san jose to san francisco was a matter of feeding roughly six dollars into a beautifully functioning automated ticket seller -- with a help system! i have come to believe that the so-called automated token dispensers in the subway stations in boston are really just a postmodern art project. the train i rode lacked the dreaded middle seat that plagues commuter rail travel in boston, where they are as despised as the middle seat of economy air travel. apparently, Caltrain is increasing the number of express baby bullet trains tomorrow.

one convenience that was particularly pleasing was the ability to access trains going in both directions from one platform. eliminating stairs solves many of the accessibility problems for the handicapped and the elderly. there's no need to maintain expensive, failure-prone services such as elevators and escalators when there are no stairs. one not so pleasing matter was the absence of schedules and maps at the san jose station. it did, however, have a sign helpfully indicating the direction of san francisco. the MUNI in san francisco was similarly awesome. there was that moment when a very drunk homeless person began ranting at everyone else on the train, but it was over quickly.

i met up with a friend and her family on haight street to celebrate the end of her bar examination. i detected the smell of marijuana on just about every block. we visited Amoeba Music where i was forced to buy three records at gunpoint. apparently, holding a bag from that particular store must mark one as a member of the club because two different people tried to sell me pot after we left. we had dinner at the _fabulous_ Cha Cha Cha where we gorged on six or seven unbelievable caribbean tapas and drank a pitcher of sangria. it was well worth the hour long wait.

public transportation in san francisco does not open very early on the weekends. the travel marathon back to san jose for the BlogHer Conference began at 5:00 in the morning. after a rather pricey cab ride to the bus terminal, i discovered that the only person who gets any sleep on an early morning Greyhound bus ride is the one who snores loudly enough to cause vibrations in the nearby seats. an even pricier cab ride from the Greyhound station in san jose delivered me to Techmart where this little introvert was quickly overwhelmed by the rush and the roar of the energy of a few hundred brassy, audacious women.

i will write about my impressions really soon. i endured another endless coast to coast trip in a flying tin can today. i survived by reading another one and a half early heinlein novels, so i haven't had a chance to process the experience. i would to thank kevin drum for linking us and extend a warm welcome to readers from the washington monthly. to be honest, i'm a little intimidated by this kind of attention to our blog. i had a nice chat with kevin during the lunch break and managed to sound mostly coherent despite having a major case of jet lag and total sensory overload from the first half of BlogHer. like i said, i'm an introvert. i feel overwhelmed by outings that involve more than four or five people.

i had a fabulous time, and i feel the need to climb under a rock now and sleep a lot.