Trax Woes

The commute today was a nightmare. I rode my bike to TRAX, as I have been doing for some time now. There was a chill in the air whipping around me as I cruised down the shoulder of 7200 south. A short 10 minutes later I found myself coasting onto the train platform. I made it only a couple of meters before I had to dismount and walk - the platform was packed. I could mostly see over the heads of the crowd as the train approached sluggishly, it's cabin jammed with commuters. As the train rattled to a stop along the station, I took a deep breath, and dove in. Surprisingly, the BO factor was almost nil despite being swallowed in a sea of bodies. It turned out these people were swarming to the Delta Center to hear a series of motivational speakers. Some genius had scheduled the whole affair for 8:00am on a weekday.
Looking through the windows in the cabin doors, I saw the scowling faces of would-be commuters glaring back. At a couple of stops, some determined individuals would try to shove their way aboard, amidst grunts and shuffling feet. I was mostly insulated from the crowd by my bicycle, which I held as an aegis against the onslaught of bodies. People weren't rude, and many cracked jokes about the situation. I just thought it ironic that anyone willing to put up with this would need motivation from some speaker. It must be true that those seminars are like a drug, leaving the attendees with a euphoric feeling of well being that quickly fades with the memory of the event, creating an eventual dependency on external feedback in order to feel good. On the other hand, it could be these folks were being paid by their employers to attend.
I just remember being relieved to find out all these folks weren't heading downtown to worship the president's entourage.