so we begin with me leaving my dorm AN HOUR before i had to be at north station yesterday. i walked to the bc bus stop to get to cleveland circle, so I can get on the d line, which would pretty much guarantee me to get to north station in about 20 minutes. except that the bc bus sucks ass. they were only running two busses on that route even though the football game had just gotten out and EVERYBODY AND THEIR MOTHER was trying to get to cleveland circle. so when the bus finally did come 15 minutes later, the driver mouthed at us “too full” and drove right on by. fuck. now i only have 45 minutes to get to north station, and no choice but to take the b line (it was right there) which is pretty much just as effective as walking. backwards. very, very slowly. so i’m sitting on the train just STARING at my watch, practically biting my fingers off (and i don’t even chew my nails), physically SHAKING over the stress. it was at about this time that i notice that the specific train i was on was only going to go as far as government center, so i was going to have to get off there and change trains. fantastic. i called my mom, who thought outside the box for me and told me to just run from government center to north station. okaaaay…that makes it slightly better. i started to calm down and actually think i could make it, until the train pulls into kenmore AND JUST STOPS. for NO reason. the conductor actually came on the intercom and said “hi folks, we’re just gonna sit here for a few minutes.” oh really? cuz i couldn’t tell. i’m so glad you were able to shed some light on the situation. jackass. anyway, so the t starts up again (after “a few minutes”) and i decide i can’t even wait as long as government center, so i jump off at park street and start SPRINTING to north station (look at a map if you really want to know), with my heavy-ass bookbag, and heinous running style. i had seven minutes to get to north station. i made it in seven minutes and thirty seconds. i honestly thought i was gonna cry.

see, i had to get the 5:30 train so that i could get to acton by 6:30, so i could take chester out, who had been home alone since 10am (we were pushing it as it was, to be honest). but now i’m stuck at north station, the next train isn’t going to leave until 7:30, which means i wouldn’t get home until closer to nine, which meant that i would effectively be leaving an 11-year-old dog home for ELEVEN HOURS (and cleaning up the not-so-fun results awaiting me on the carpet). again, shit. so i get on my phone and spend the next twenty minutes calling ANYONE i can think of who lives in/around acton (all of whom are now dead to me) trying to get someone to pick me up at alewife. nope. three no answers, one “i don’t have a car” and one “just plain no” later, i’m STILL at north station, and am now just painfully aware of the fact that i have no friends. and then the bruins game let out. so now i’m stampeded by about 20,000 drunk hockey fans who don’t understand the meaning of “personal space,” with nothing but the prospect of cleaning up dog pee to get me through. oh, and it was about this time that i started coughing up my lung. ever since i had that problem in london with the air pollution (if you don’t know what i’m talking about, just run with it), i can’t do things like spontaneously sprint a mile in cold weather without sounding like i have tuberculosis. it’s a great party trick. also, FABULOUS for crowded train stations.