Blogpost #1: Public transportation sucks at being public transportation.

It's 8PM and I have just arrived from school. I am at rage right now so please excuse my choice of words. 

First off, please allow me to introduce myself a bit. I am a 3rd year college student who, for some reason, has to wake up at 5 in the morning EVERY MORNING in order to catch the train and not be late for her 7:30 AM class. And just like every other Filipino, I have no choice but to take public transportation. 

Going to school was never an issue for me. Falling in line for, say, 15 minutes is not bad at all. Although having to wake up at 5AM makes me want to puke on whoever invented morning classes, it's nothing compared to how I feel whenever it's time to go home. My schedule for this term is basically very shitty. Why? My classes end at 5:30 PM. 

Sure, I could hang out at a friend's house or at our school's parking lot for a couple hours just to kill time and wait for the rush hour to end just like I always did back then but, shit, what if I actually have to go meet someone? It's a constant battle between breaking a promise and killing myself. And to be honest, I'd choose the latter. 

I've been taking the MRT to and from school for almost 3 years now so having to deal with all sorts of smells and whatnot is not at all new to me. But today's different. I've always hated it; but what just happened makes me want to pull my fucking hair out.

So, I was supposed to go to the mall with my mom today after school. We had a deal in which I agreed to meet her at home at around 6:30PM and we'll go from there. I thought I was lucky enough that my coach dismissed us early and I was able to leave school at exactly 5:30 but little did I know, a long-ass line to the MRT station was waiting for me. 

Long story short, I had to wait in line for roughly 2 hours under this bipolar weather; had to deal with all these annoying people (no offense); acquired blisters on my feet; and disappointed my mother. Public transportation-1, Chelsea-0. 

Anyway, according to an article entitled "Your Commute is Killing You" by Anne Lowry, long commutes could lead to lack of sleep, obesity, and even divorce.

“Commuting is a migraine-inducing life-suck—a mundane task about as pleasurable as assembling flat-pack furniture or getting your license renewed, and you have to do it every day. If you are commuting, you are not spending quality time with your loved ones. You are not exercising, doing challenging work, having sex, petting your dog, or playing with your kids (or your Wii). You are not doing any of the things that make human beings happy. Instead, you are getting nauseous on a bus, jostled on a train, or cut off in traffic.” Said, Lowry.

The quotation above implies that public transportation is a bitch; a home-wrecker even. And the fact that it could possibly be the main reason for the downfall of my relationships bothers me. Just imagine how much quality time we're wasting on these long rides (or in my case, lines) we could instead be spending with our families. It's depressing. 

According to a research by Thomas James Christian of Brown University, it is not the total length of workday that really matters, it is commuting. It is commuting that makes us lonely. It is commuting that causes the stress. It is commuting that makes us eat less healthy. It is commuting that slowly drags us to the darkest pits of hell. But then again, it is also commuting that takes me to school, and 80% of Filipinos to work so I guess that leads us to a conclusion that public transportation basically sucks at being public transportation.

"Longer commutes are also associated with an increased likelihood of non-grocery food purchases and substitution into lower intensity exercise activities." Said, Thomas James Christian.

My life was in fact less stressful in high school despite the fact that I had to stay in school for 11 hours. Back then, I didn't have to take 3 rides, or catch the train; it was a one-way trip. Also, I get to eat home-made breakfast and dinner at home with my family.

In the same article mentioned above, Lowry stated that people with long commutes are fatter. Of course, this doesn't apply to everyone but you get the point. Long commutes cause eating disorders. Besides the constant breaking of promises, I have also noticed a big change in my eating habits. As an athlete, it is obviously required for us to stay as fit as possible thus, having a proper diet. Due to my everyday commute, eating on time and even having the appetite to eat has become a challenge. Refraining myself from eating too much is even a problem sometimes. 

This all goes to show that if I die now, it'll probably be because I took the train.