Pajama-clad Bums in East Cleveland

Transferring buses. An activity that all should avoid if possible, even if that means taking a slightly longer route to get where you're going. Especially if, like mine, your transfer is in East Cleveland. Imagine: you get on the 40 on the corner of Cedar and Lee, ride it for a while, and then have to get off on the corner of Euclid and Superior. And that's the nice part of East Cleveland: the part with cars regularly driving by, storefronts, and people.

A bus-rider type I neglected to mention last week: the high kid in pajamas. I use the word "kid" liberally. No one actually knows how old he is. Somewhere in the range of 17-24. No one knows where he's going. He gets on the bus, and then gets off at some obscure stop, like E. 66th. There is no real reason to get off there, as the only noticeable feature of the area is an abandoned building being used as a billboard for the Clinic. He smells like a marijuana farm caught flame and he was the unlucky farmer. Another distinguishing feature is his inability to read social cues.

I wish they all wore pajamas like these...

I can count on two hands the number of times I've been sitting inconspicuously, listening to music, and one of these societal failures asks me what time it is. After politely letting him know that it is, in fact 10:13, I go back to listening to music without a smile, or even a spare glance in his direction. Next, he interrupts me again to ask if I "want to be his friend". No. For some unknown reason, I don't really want to be his friend. I'm sure this happens to other people as well. It can also come in the form of asking for directions, when the bus is coming, any kind of question, really.

You're probably wondering how to avoid a situation like this. For you I have some good news, and some bad news. The good news: they're incredibly easy to spot (and smell). They're the ones wearing pajama bottoms, smelling like they haven't showered in a week, and its not uncommon for their hair to be in a form of clothe. (Optional: they also wear those ridiculous, huge headphones around their neck and blast their bad R&B.) The bad news: while easy to spot, they are hard to avoid. Just follow the rules listed in my last post, and you should be good.