Big Brother is Watching (or not)

I am being watched.

My first week of work, I noticed that there were cameras in the hallways of my building. A little creepy, but not unheard of. Then I noticed that there were cameras "concealed" in little domes in the ceiling of my actual office. A little creepier. Later I noticed that there were cameras at every Coaster train station. The station where I get on in the morning, in fact, has about five that I can see, and I'm sure there are more.

My first thought after becoming aware that I was surrounded by cameras most of my work day was of CSI and how they solve crimes using surveillance cameras; if something should happen to me, they could use the cameras to discover my where-abouts. My next thought was, between the train stations and work, my every move is being tracked. Again, kind of creepy.

After working from home for years, this whole camera thing caught me off guard. I had never even noticed security cameras before, and now I see them everywhere. Not really sure what this means. Maybe that an alien race is watching us to learn our habits and will soon take over the world. Or possibly that I just get out more now.

My paranoia was put to rest, however, after I read in a news article that in some big city (London maybe?) about one-third of the cameras don't work. Budget cuts have caused them to fall into disrepair. So maybe I'm not being watched after all. Or maybe I am...

FM-ers Far and Wide

Heather and me at a trade show marketing our wares.

In my first blog post, I mentioned that I used to be an editor for the magazine Fitness Management. Since that posting less than 1 month ago, I found out that three of my former co-workers (and current good friends) also have blogs. And two of those were started within two weeks of mine. Crazy!

I bring this up mostly for the benefit of you readers who are friends with writers/former writers/editors/former editors — you may, some day, get mentioned in a blog. We writers/editors can't seem to help ourselves. I, in fact, received specific instructions from a college friend NOT to mention him in my blog. Not sure what he's afraid of...

Here is a brief run-down of what we former FM-ers are doing these days:

Christina is now a photographer in LA.
http://blog.cgandolfo.com/

Heather is a writer/editor at Bucknell University.
http://johnsrenovation.wordpress.com/

Shana is a freelance writer/editor in Boston.
http://2november2009.blogspot.com/

FM didn't know what great talent it had when it had it!

The Sweet Smell of ... Success?

Surprisingly, bad smells on the train don't come from the bathroom.

When I traipsed through Europe while in college, I became quite accustomed to two things while riding the trains: being vigilant about watching out for thieves and body odor. Not my body odor, but that of others. I bring this up only to point out that this is not a problem on the Coaster (nor is thievery). Deodorant use seems to be widespread in San Diego County. But that's not to say that repugnant smells don't assail my nostrils on occasion.

The first bad smell to hit me one unsuspecting morning was the grease smell of some type of morning sandwich, like an Egg McMuffin. It filled the whole car, and made my stomach churn even after the guy finished eating it. This is just too early for so much grease.

Another common odor is cheap hairspray, especially on rainy or misty mornings. Think the school bus in high school or the women's locker room.

And lest you think it's just women's beauty products that offend, more than once I have had to move because a man was wearing way too much cheap cologne. Once during a crowded morning commute I had to pull my shirt up over my nose to keep from gagging from this guy's morning cologne shower.

Bad breath has also motivated me to move.

One of the most unusual smells I've encountered on the Coaster is manure. I got on one morning and the whole train reeked of it. I looked around and no one else seemed to be reacting. It was really strong, and I had to cover my nose for the entire hour ride. When walking to work that morning, I asked a guy who works in my building about it, and he said, "You obviously haven't been riding the train very long." Turns out, this happens a few times a year, since the trains sit overnight right next to agricultural fields. Tomatoes maybe. So if they are fertilizing and the wind is just right, all of the cars get hit with it, and the trains smell for a couple of days. They actually made an announcement on my ride home that day, since they must have received many complaints.

Before riding the Coaster, I never thought of bad smells as something I'd have to deal with. But it's all part of the commuting experience. So maybe success actually does have a scent.

Things I Shouldn't Have Overheard

I never know what I'm going to overhear when I get on the train.

An abbreviated list of things I've overheard on the train that the talker should realize isn't for public consumption. Most are phone conversations, but some are discussions with other passengers.

• Phone numbers and addresses—all the time!
• Account numbers
• Nurses talking about doctors at Scripps Encinitas
• A juror talking about a trial (yup!)
  
• Lawyers talking about cases (does your lawyer ride the train?)
  
• A woman having a detailed phone conversation about a business loan
• A man discussing his mortgage loan on the phone
• A mom telling her young daughter what not to tell daddy when they get to his house (they apparently are not together)
• A college-age guy talking loudly on the phone about all of the "hot bitches" at the trade show (This would have been entertaining, except he was sooo loud.)
  

The usual fare:

• What is on sale at the grocery store/Costco
• Medical problems/treatments (sooo common)
• Vacations planned and returned from
• Shop talk (computer programmers, nurses, courthouse workers, etc.)
• What's for dinner
• Kids, pets, families in general

Dolphins and Deer and Coyotes, Oh My!

A wetland area where I often see deer from the train.

A coworker and I were walking from the train to the office recently, and I was telling her about the loud people in my train car that morning. Her response was, "I love this commute. It's way better than the El." She was referring to the El in Chicago, which stands for "elevated train." It's basically a subway, but it is mostly above-ground.

Since I went to college in Chicago, I am quite familiar with the El, and had to agree with her about the Coaster being a much nicer, cleaner, and quieter ride. What strikes me as the biggest contrast, however, is the view.

The ride from Oceanside to downtown is right along the coast, sometimes yards from the ocean. Certain times of the year I can see the sunrise over a lagoon or the sunset over the ocean. It is quite stunning. And quite different from the grimy city view you get from the El.

Along with the beautiful scenery is the wildlife that comes with it. Beautiful white cranes, ducks, and rabbits are commonplace. About a dozen times I've seen deer right next to the tracks in a field. Often there are three or four together, and, in the spring, there are usually young deer with their moms. A couple of times I've seen dolphin playing in the waves in the morning; when this happens, the whole car switches their attention to the ocean. The sight of dolphins never gets old. Once I saw a coyote disappearing into a thick stand of trees.

So even if certain things about commuting on the train are inconvenient or annoying, the views often make it all worthwhile. After all, I could be in an underground subway looking at rats and graffiti.

Never Too Far

View from my office. Yes, that's the train station right outside my window.

Lest you think I forget about the train once I get to work, don't you worry. The train is never very far. See photo.