Surviving the Cincinnati Metro System

After many bus trips during my south of the boarder experience, I was pleasantly surprised the first time I set foot on the 81x that runs from the east side towards downtown Cincinnati. I was greeted by the cool breeze of air conditioning, the odorless air and an all around smooth ride as I was surrounded by a professional crowd.

I didn't expect things to be so nice.

But I quickly managed to screw things up on my return trip. I got the bus, threw the coin in the meter and took a seat towards the back - thus, ensuing the bus crisis of '09.

"Excuse me. EXCUSE me," the bus driver called from the front. "You don't pay when you get on. You pay when you get off. Now, how am I going to remember that you paid? Did everyone else pay? No. So now you better remind me that you already paid when you get off, or else I won't remember."

I think I saw a man shaking his head at me.

"Oh, you forgot. You have to pay when you get off the bus," scolded one of the women up front. "Not when you get on the bus, honey," she continued, making me feel a little less like an adult and more like a toddler.

I thought about telling her how she forgot that white socks do not look good sandals, but I thought better of it. I shut my mouth and kept it that way for the remainder of the uneventful trip.

Will I ride the bus again? Yes. In fact, I already have.

My Lesson of the Day: Don't go throwing your coin into meters if you don't know where it belongs.