My commute

Just a few notes about my commute, but before this I must happily proclaim that I will be on the beach in Belize by this time next week. Now, I generally am not too fond of flying internationally for only four nights, and I'm becoming less and less fond of even flying domestically for short times due to the unbelievable environmental effects of jet travel, but this was a deal that simply could not be ignored. I am a member of an organization (which shall remain nameless since I don't want any competition, suckas) which sends email alerts regarding cheap fares for your local airports. Most of them are only slightly good deals, but they sent a special email alert about incredibly cheap tickets EWR-BZE and we had to jump on them ASAP. I hadn't ever really considered going there and the only thing I knew about Belize was from the excellent book, "Our Man in Belize." I didn't even know my class schedule, but we went ahead and committed to four nights in Belize for a grand total of, with taxes, $180 per RT ticket. That's right, $180, and it would have been $140 if we could have stayed longer.
Now on to the commute:
I am in the unenviable position of having a monster of a commute that takes anywhere from 1.5-2 hours, and has lasted longer when traffic has been atrocious. No, I'm not stupid enough to drive, although that would take slightly less time on average. I'd really rather be punched in the cock repeatedly that to subject myself to that, besides the fact that anyone who travels by car (especially my inefficient van) when there is a reasonable transit option is really a pretty awful and useless person. And by reasonable I do not mean that it picks you up at your door and drops you off at work. Anyhow, I subject myself to this commute in the name of love, with the knowledge that it is only temporary and that I will not set foot in Jersey for the whole summer unless I have a frisbee in my hand and sand underfoot. That's another thing I cannot understand, how people can do this to themselves FOREVER.
It really isn't all that bad. I actually get quite a bit of reading done, of which I have plenty, and I can also sleep pretty well during the long haul portion.
I have two parts to my commute: the trip from my door to the Port Authority or Penn Station, and the long haul trip to New Brunswick. I have two choices for the long haul. The first is to take NJTransit commuter rail, which costs $17.75 RT and takes anywhere from 42 min to 1hr 15min. And it sucks ass. I really just don't like it, at least not compared to the alternative, which is the Suburban Transit aka Coach USA bus. The bus costs $13 RT for students. It is much more comfortable than the train and does not have blazing lights in your face. It does not make stops or have announcements. It is never crowded and people aren't talking like they do on the train.
Occasionally some cock knocker will watch a movie, but then I just plop my arms on the back of their seat and watch it over their shoulders. I have, however been having some annoyances with drivers who leave early, which is absolutely unacceptable for a transit operator.
The best part of my trip is right after we come out of the Lincoln Tunnel and I get a lovely view of midtown Manhattan, often with the sun rising behind. I have been taking pics and will be posting the many faces of the Manhattan morning eventually.
The subway is another story, although I will try to avoid the gritty details since breakfast is almost ready.
I have to leave at least 45 min before my bus is scheduled to leave. I have three choices, provided I do not bike. I can walk a nice ten minutes through the park to the L train and transfer to the Broadway line, but then I have to take the godforsaken L train. This damn train is always completely packed and it has a penchant for breaking down in the tunnel and making me miss my bus.
My preferred choice is to take the dreaded G train. This is the stigmatized enemy of every New Yorker, but I feel that it has a bad rap. There are some serious problems with it, but it sure makes my commute better, generally. I will take the G to the 7 and then walk a block from Times Sq to PA. I usually prefer doing this walk outside, but sometimes I walk through the tunnel.
There is this very short guy with a small head in the tunnel who plays the accordion. This always brightens my morning. The plethora of street and subway musicians is one of my favorite things about New York. I want to give this accordion play money, but I walk in the reverse commute direction and would have to brave a river of frowning New Jerseyites to cross over to where he is playing.
I am lucky in that I can look at the platform to see if there are a lot of people waiting or if the train has just passed. If it has, I can catch a bus that also takes me to the 7, although in the morning it can take an inordinate amount of time since the stops are spaced ridiculously close together. In one two block stretch there are three stops and someone always is getting on in the morning.
But, I am off now to clean up from breakfast, have a drink with my outgoing roommate and then go to a potluck where we will be signing up for the CSA summer share.