The Saturday Train

Saturday, February 18, 2006 - 2:10 p.m.

Went into work for just a few hours to catch up. My friend Michael gave me a ride and I took the el home.

It is BITTERLY cold but there is a peaceful serene to the el riders. Like we are all in this together. All the shoppers, retail personnel, waiters, security guards and overdedicated office workers are going to manage to make it to and from the train.

There was a man who had just purchased something from PINK at Marshall Fields (PINK is a men's brand with a shirt having a minimum price tag of around $125). He was reading the Tribune and had it folder so carefully so all he could see was the specific section he was reading.

There were these two young women who had just come from Starbucks. They were both wearing some bling sunglasses and their coats were very soft. Most people were wearing very dark coats but not these two, light and pastel. They came right out of a "enjoy your afternoon of shopping and making friends with some Starbucks coffee" ad (come to think of it, Starbucks does not have TV ads...hmmm).

Many people sleeping even though the sun was blaring through the windows. There was a black woman sleeping next to me who had beautiful skin. We was very soft looking and was deep black skin.

On my walk home, I always pass a church. In the yard of the church was a used early pregnancy test that someone discarded.