Yesterday marked a big day in my life as a commuter. Now not only have I run, biked, CTA'd (bus & train) and driven to and/or from work, I have also METRA'd. The Ravenswood stop on the UP North line is just under 2 miles from the apartment, which makes it completely bikeable in warmer weather, and completely driveable in these here arctic temps. Yesterday morning we left the apt at 7:40, and despite about 10 minutes worth of parking tension, we still managed to catch the slightly-late 7:56, arrive downtown at 8:11, and had we not stopped for oatmeal and egg sandwiches would have been nested in cubicles within 35 minutes of our departure. This feat is simply amazing, considring that lately the CTA has been yielding 60 - 70 minute door-to-door commutes. In contrast, the Metra is cleaner, warmer, timlier, more efficicient, and the station is closer to my office. Riders are older and better dressed; there's no hint of the post-Greek aura that clings to Red Line commuters from Sheridan to Armitage. The only downfall, it seems, is driving to the station. It's possible that I may convert, at least until my Superbowl Office Pool Windfall matures into a NEW BIKE!

Until then, though, I'll have plenty of time to stare at the laptop screens of my fellow rail commuters and wonder exactly when spreadsheets became the medium of choice for such a large slice of Corporate America. Occupying the fields of vision of, ohhh, probably 90% of my coworkers (me included) at least 85% of the workday, I fear that spreasheets may have surpassed verbal and written communication as our primary source of human interaction. Sometimes when I try to verbalize this idea to my peers, they retreat to their cubicles and send me an email: "I believe you'll find the necessary information appended in column five." Of course, I've sent this email and many of its variants myself, and I appreciate the efficienty of a nicely-crafted Excel workbook or Access table, but that makes the whole sordid scene neither okay, nor any less soul-sucking.