Transit Authority #121

As I waited to cross the street, the bus flew by with four seconds left on the counter. As I passed under the tracks, the loop train arrived, boarded and left again. The city bid me walk today.

Transit Authority #120

A pair of young event staff in the night, each one carrying a table setting planter.

"I gotta find the way to get from the pink to the red."

"I think it's just Clark and Lake."

I nod, and interject, "He's right, but from here the pink goes out to Clinton, and all the way to 54th. We're already past the point of transfer."

They thank me, and run through scenarios together:

- What if you get stranded out there?
- The pink runs until two, it'll be fine. And if it's not I'll jump it.
- What if you get caught jumping it and they call the cops?
- I'll be long gone by the time the cops show up.
- I like the way you think. You sure you don't want wanna just crash at my pad, man?
- Nah, I got stuff to do tomorrow morning.
- Wish I had some weed, man. Weed goes real well with this stuff, chills it out.

The orange comes, and then the pink. They bundle their plants carefully into their arms and are gone, a few cars back.

Transit Authority #119

Two large men gesticulating the fantasy of a street fight, talking about being able to take a punch, shake it off, shadowboxing, pumping each other up. Plenty of seats around, but they won't sit.

"Lemme tell you something about you bro, when I saw you hit that motherfucker, he didn't get up off the ground."

Transit Authority #118

A CTA staff with a blind guy on his arm, leads the fella to the door and shows him in. People make way, and the guy enters into the train car.

"Motherfucker, you're supposed to get me to a seat," he says once he’s in.

Transit Authority #116

A man sells incense on State Street by burning a dozen incense sticks at once. Downwind from him, a street preacher talks about cigarettes and marijuana smoke and cites the ten commandments.

Transit Authority #113

A man reaches down and his hand returns holding the Cheat Sheet, featuring a gossip column on Taylor Swift. A while later the bus stops, and then he replaces it and standing up, pushes through the doors.

Transit Authority #112

A young man makes to dart across the street on red but surveys oncoming traffic and thinks again. A woman next to him on the sidewalk giggles and he blushes and grins down to her, but she's on a hands-free device and hasn't addressed him at all.

Transit Authority #108

Yesterday, I walked with the protesters against a Donald Trump visit to Chicago. Today, I walked with the Chicago Teacher's Union when they blocked the street against rush hour traffic. Who will I walk with tomorrow?