UTA Trip - Lance McDowell

I thought this assignment was going to be way different for me than it actually was. I thought the experience was about the people on the bus, but for me it was more about the people on the street. When you drive a car you don't really have a lot of time to stare out the window. You're too busy concentrating on the road. But as I rode the bus it was really interesting to focus on the people on the street.

For example, there was this girl out for a jog waiting for a light. Her hair was perfect. Her shoes matched the straps of her sports bra I could see sticking out of a wider necked shirt. I couldn't help but wonder if the girl cared more about being seen running than actually running. She probably spent an hour getting ready for her half hour jog.

But the thing that struck me most about the trip was when I got off the bus. The girl behind me called up to the bus driver and said "Thank you!" as we exited the rear door of the bus. That was the biggest lesson I learned. There are a lot of thankless jobs out there. There are people who clean buildings, mop floors, prepare our food, fill vending machines, and drive buses. When was the last time I thanked a janitor? Where would we be without those people in thankless, important jobs. There was a girl on the bus with an apron in hand, probably headed to work. Between a car payment and gas she wouldn't probably take home much of her check without the bus. She should be grateful for public transportation if she isn't already.

For the heck of it, the most interesting thing I saw/heard on the bus was a man in a ninja turtle shirt under a sport coat talking to someone loudly on the phone. He said something to the effect of, "They won't want my stuff because I write like an American. They're British so they won't want it, unless they're doing a show about Americans."