commuting

I happened to be on The El at 5ish today. Crowded and sorta sweaty, yes, but there's something about seeing Chicago from that venue that always gets me all antsy and stuff. It makes me feel like there are so many places and people that I need to see and know. It's overwhelming. I like seeing all the well-dressed (and not-well-dressed) people, and I wonder where they're going, where they're coming from, what they do, who they're texting, and why, and what music they're listening to. I also like being able to look down at people's backyards and onto their porches and into their windows. Not in a weird way, just like, "Huh, cool place." Kinda reminds me of that subway piece in Will Eisner's New York.

What a far cry from my "commute." I usually don't see anyone as I walk through my quiet neighborhood, and my brain is usually fixated on figuring out things that happened throughout my own day. Sometimes, I see Richard Powers walking home from work. Wonder what that guy's thinking.