8 Rules for Not Sucking at Public Transportation
Like many of you, I rely on public transportation to get to work. But unlike many of you, I don't do it like a jerk.
Like many of you, I rely on public transportation to get to work. I ride the train. Some of you might take the subway or bus. Still others, like my buds Matt Tobey over at Comedy Central Insider and Adam Tod Brown right here at Cracked, work at home, writing dick jokes in their boxers, worrying only about synchronizing the mute button to their Hot Pocket farts so no one hears them ripping ass during a conference call.
"That was a close one!"
Do: Sit Near the Toilet
If you're riding a form of a public transportation that contains a toilet, you have a special opportunity. See, human nature dictates that we avoid excrement and waste. Just look at our expressions: "Don't shit where you eat," "Eat shit and die" and, of course "Sarah Palin has the political insight of a talking piece of shit." Indeed, the aversion to fecal matter is a constant for all of humanity, with the small exception of German porn enthusiasts and Nicki Minaj fans.
Clean ears thoroughly after listening.
Do: Drink Alcohol Publicly
This is another one of my patented tricks, and it's kind of a win/win proposition. My local rail sells beer and cocktails on the platform. If you're looking for your own personal space, I urge you to purchase one. Many a night, after a hard day's work, I've cracked open a tall boy in a bag while riding home. Some commuters are indifferent, but a certain percentage of my fellow passengers seem to ask, "What kind of a dirty, chemically addicted alcoholic is so booze-dependent that he must suck down a Coors Light from a paper bag at 7 p.m.?" Sometimes I get a vodka tonic, which seems to work even better. You might consider taking a big gulp just at the moment someone eyeing your adjacent seat walks by. Does everyone avoid a drinking commuter? No, only a certain percentage equate train-drinking with gas-huffing, but if you decrease the overall number of people willing to sit next to you, you've upped your odds for sitting alone. And what if this plan doesn't work? Well, then you still have a beer, don't you, ya big baby.
I've never heard of this beer, but I'd drink it to keep people away from me.
Do: Wear Headphones
It is an inescapable reality that you won't always be able to keep people from sitting next to you, but that doesn't mean you have to talk to them. This is why headphones are essential. They're even more important than an actual iPod to connect them to, because it's all about pushing people away in a socially acceptable way.
Warning: These should keep people from talking to you, but may attract hipsters.
Do: Take a Chance With Morbid Obesity
Commuters come in all shapes and sizes. Tiny little girls, morbidly obese men and people like me who, even a decade after retiring from Calvin Klein underwear modeling, are still only a mere 15 pounds from their desired weight. To have the best traveling experience, you need to engage in some body-proportion profiling. But wait, this isn't going where you think. I would no sooner make fun of a fat person in print than I would accuse Cracked's own Adam Tod Brown of constantly ripping ass. This entry is about those occasions where you might want to consider embracing your larger commuters. First off, in my experience, some heavier travelers are actually very conscious of their dimensions and far more considerate than some bony-assed businessman who has no compunction about driving his razor elbows into your ribs while he folds and unfolds his New York Times crossword puzzle like it's some blanket at a douchebag picnic.
What's an eight-letter word for murdered commuter?
Don't: Sit Like You Have Bowling Ball Testicles
While I may have just listed four strategies for being left alone on public transportation, I don't want to give the impression that any behavior is justified. There are all sorts of ways to secure personal space that are completely unacceptable. Obviously, no one would think it's OK to drop nonstop gas bombs to keep people from sitting next to you. I mean, I don't even need to address that. (Right, Adam?) But there are other things that people still think are somehow acceptable. The biggest culprit? Dudes who think they're allowed to sit with their legs akimbo like they have elephantitis of the nuts.
An elephant no one likes.
Don't: Roll Your Eyes When Someone Says "Excuse Me"
Much like trying to explain to certain Internet humorists the proper time and place for displays of gastric distress, rolling your eyes at fellow commuters is pointless. Coveting your own personal space on a train is not the same as believing you have a greater right to it than any other paying commuter. One ass, one seat. It's not audacious of someone to want to sit in the seat next to you. (Unless they're a real live crazy person looking for a friend amid a sea of other empty seats.) If someone says "Excuse me" so they can sit down, there is a very simple response: saying "Sure" and getting out of the way. All your huffing and puffing and eye-rolling won't turn a normal request into a rude one no matter how much it upsets your fantasies about being King of AssCushionLandia, owning all that you survey.
"I'm also Prince of FootRestVille."
Don't: Place Bags on a Seat
This is a tricky one. There is no hard and fast rule against ever placing something on a seat. Depending on the time of your commute and your location, you might be riding a form of public transportation that never reaches full capacity. Your purse/backpack/work bag isn't depriving anyone of anything. But that's not what I'm talking about. I'm singling out people who use their bags as some sort of placeholder to keep you away. At this point, I know what you're saying: "This article is getting boring, tell another joke about Adam farting." (Knock Knock. Who's there? Adam. Adam who? Adam Tod Brown of Cracked, who probably has undiagnosed irritable bowel syndrome.)
That can't be right, can it?
Don't: Pretend to Be "Norwegian"
Have you ever been in a crowd and said "Excuse me," and the other person just flat out didn't move? I have. Multiple times. And in a completely racist fashion, I must admit I attribute such behavior to one specific race above all others. And guess what? I'll never write it down or speak it aloud because such generalizations give way to racial hatred, which is more repugnant to me than sharing an elevator with Adam Tod Brown. But for lack of a more honest and wholly inappropriate answer, let's call these people ... Norwegians. (That's really more of a nationality than a race, huh? Hmm. What can you do?)
"I cannot hear you."
Pictured above: Metaphorical Norwegian balls.
For more from Gladstone, check out The 7 Worst Behaviors on Public Transportation and 8 Inexcusable Behaviors on Public Transportation: Part 2.
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