Saturday

Yesterday's Update* mentioned things Frank and I saw in museums over Wednesday and Thursday, but when I look back over this week it'll be all the odd crap we saw on the Metro that I'll remember. Possibly, the fact that DC's clean and orderly subway system is so conducive to well-mannered district commuters is the reason weirdos seem to stand out. Do similar weirdos fade into the background in NY? That's what popular culture would have me believe; but oddballs are evident here. Or maybe because I like people-watching I observe more than those commuters who read books or stare into space might. The modestly wild-haired gentleman riding the orange line between Court House and McPherson Square Wednesday morning was hardly subtle, however. Over the week, I saw lazily punked-out teens illegally drinking Starbucks on the train, a woman with magenta highlights belaboring the fact that she cannot wear shoes without socks, and other subtler people. This wild-haired guy was different. He boarded the train and proceeded to hold his daily paper open with both hands, propped face-forward in the crook of the sliding door. He stared at the paper with his tongue jutting from his mouth, occasionally cussing. Since he adamantly refused to grip the banisters around him, he stumbled whenever the train moved. This made him really mad: he would curse the train, shake his fist, and pound the walls. He would intermittently yell at other passing trains whenever the doors were open. He had a routine: he'd step out onto the platform and slap his hand on the wall to keep the doors from closing on exiting passengers: "come on, already!" he’d yell, even if no one was actually leaving the train. He was nutty enough that even the commuters reading books noticed for sure. [Cavin]