The Los Angeles Commute

My Drive

The Los Angeles Commute - The Trials and Tribulations of Commuting Through Los Angeles

So I guess you have an idea as to what the topic of discussion will be huh? Yup, my commute! Rise and shine at 5:30 and out of the house by 6:30 with 16 year old daughter in tow. Drop her off at high school in West Covina and jump on the I10 freeway heading towards . . . SANTA MONICA!

It hasn't always been this way.

A Little Background Info
I'm a legal secretary whose been in this field for some 15+ years. I started out working in Arcadia, California. Pretty great commute, but the pay wasn't so good. I then went to Pasadena. Pay was better, but boss was a solo practitioner and a jerk. So, my search for bigger and better began.

I landed in Beverly Hills. Better pay, boss was cool, but bad with money and so the business folded. Once again, the search was on.

Westwood, California was the next stop. Great job, much better pay and awesome bonuses! This time, the boss was tired of his commute and decided to close up shop and move closer to home in the valley. Everyone, but one individual was out of a job. That's okay though - no problem, I just keep going.

Next stop . . . Beverly Hills, California - BIG MISTAKE! Crazy doctor/laywer, his wife and their big white poodle! Every person in this office yelled at each other. I consider myself to be a fair and reasonable person, but this was not the place for me. I'm also a dog owner. I love pets and I love my dogs, but for some reason, this giant poodle got under my skin. His prancing around the office like he was in charge probably contributed to my hatred for this animal.

A friend came to my rescue and spoke to her boss about my great skills (pat, pat). They made an offer, I accepted and off I went to West Los Angeles (outskirts of Culver City). It wasn't long before I realized that this guy was a freak. I was able to get past the fact that he looked like bozo the clown (puffy hair on each side, but none in the middle), but his ego was way too much. For instance, he had this metal lamp in his office that he used to hit with a pen as a signal for someone who might be knocking at his door to come in. (knock, knock - bong!) "What was that?" "That means to come in" "You're kidding right?" Okay koo-koo Boy - whatever you say. "What's wrong with . . . come in?" Needless to say, he didn't care for my whitty, yet charming sense of humor and well - he fired me. No problem. Santa Monica here I come.

So here I am, Santa Monica, California. Nowhere else to go from here but the ocean. Took a little while to adjust but so far so good. The people are friendly . . . a little older, but yet friendly and they get my sense of humor!

Oh yeah, Did I mention that I have a husband, five kids, two dogs and a mortgage? They are the reason for my commute.

The Drive
In my many hours of driving, approximately 1.5 each way (on a good day), I come accross so many people and see many interesting things. I'm a people watcher by nature. I always have been. I find people pretty interesting and funny. I'm either amused by them or completely disgusted.

I have learned all the little tricks of getting around Los Angeles and can maneuver my SUV pretty well through rush hour traffic without making too many people angry along the way.

Amusing People
Speaking of getting people angry, I once came across a guy on his bike while I was heading toward the freeway on a very narrow street who got extremely angy at me because he could not get around my SUV. He jumped on the curb and walked his bike in front of my truck and began yelling at me about how I was in his way. Stopped at a light with nowhere to go I sat in my truck laughing, thinking all the while just a little gas and squish.

The One Hand Bandit
If it's one thing that drives me absolutely insane, it's bad drivers. Pre-occupied drivers fall into this category . . . well because they're pre-occupied of course and not paying attention to the road. Such as the case of the One Hand Bandit.

While driving to work one morning I notice this vehicle in the fast lane going extremely slow. There was a huge gap in front of him and I thought to myself, if I could just get in front of him. This guy was so busy checking out other chicks in the cars next to him, he wasn't paying attention to the road, or so I thought! As I drive up (now remember, he's in the fast lane, I'm now next to him), he speeds up and would not let me change lanes in front of him. I look over at him to give him the "hey buddy what's your problem look" and realize that he was actually keeping pace with me and now looking at me, actually staring at me - very intensly. Great! I'ts too early for this. Ready to give this guy the dirtiest look I could muster, I look over and soon realize that he was giving me something first . . . a bird's eye view into his small Jeep where he felt comfortable enough to whip "his little friend" out. Eeeewwww!!!! Now I'm completely grossed out. I can't get in front of him, I can't get behind him and I can't change lanes (morning rush hour traffic). Help! All I can think about is where is this guy going? To work? Is he going to shake someone's hand? (he was driving with his right hand) Is he going to touch stuff? Coffee, community donuts? Aahhhggh!! Blegh!

Anyway, Since I couldn't get around him, I decided to slow down, wwaaayyyy down. This just made the commute worse not only for me, but for the thousands of other vehicles on the 10 freeway. Calling the police didn't help. LAPD was not too interested in this guy abusing himself. I should have been a bit more vague . . . "there's a man in a jeep beating his friend" is what I should have said.

Just another day, but I keep going.

posted by MomOnTheGo @ 9:51 AM 0 comments