somewhere between Jonathan Richman’s “You’re Crazy For Taking The Bus” and Ian Dury’s “The Bus Driver’s Prayer” there is a vast, fertile untilled space
I love these stories. I visited London a few years ago and mastering the mass transit system, buses and tubes, was a real point of pride. I took one bus that seemed to make another turn every block, I had no idea how the driver ever remembered the route. And it let me out at a huge flea market that ran about 10 blocks, which was a joy to investigate. Keep 'em coming! (also love the Emily Hubley shoutout! I used to play softball with her.)
Wait Jim - was that at the Con Ed field in Manhattan? I know Georgia and Ira were regulars, Todd Abramson, and my brother Michael who was called the Commish. I'm glad you enjoy my English tales, the London bus routes really are a delight!
Amy, you’ll always be a Noo Yawker. And hence always entitled to pay as you please at the Met. 50 cents seems about right. Don’t let no one tell you different.
Also appreciated Mick Jones being compared to Jesus in a church full of antiquities. Led me, for some reason, to listen to “The Sound of Sinners” (Sandinista).
I do still have my NY driver's license (good for another several years) - 50 cents it is!
I'm glad you liked that Mick Jones bit Jacob, it was a glorious visitation but then I thought "maybe he's hanging out there all the time" and why not, it's a really cool archive.
Great stories! It is one thing I love about the UK and especially London: great, easy public transportation as opposed to here. The freedom of it all! Sam West has quite the acting resume himself so what a cool experience.
It is a revelation, Karen - to be able to ride buses and trains easily and fairly cheaply- I know people here might complain about the train service but in upstate NY it was impossible to reach the train without a car or arrange a car service, AND it cost a minimum of nearly $40 one way to NYC. We went r/t from Norwich to London (about the same distance) for a little over $20, it makes moving around and doing things seem a lot easier. I'll have to watch All Creatures Great and Small with Sam!
Firstly, glad to hear you fit in and have friends around. Old friends are the best. Secondly, your friend's book looks fantastic, assuming the illustrations on the publisher's site are part of it. There goes another small bit of money, eh? ;) You'll get the minutia of the passes "sorted" I'm sure.
Good writing as always. Those little day to day details of LDN remind me I really don’t belong in Doha, although we do gave M&S stores with automatic tills..
You were definitely among your tribe, the rock stars and should-be-rock-stars in London. By the way (and this is a bit off-topic), yesterday I received a random email from ConcertArchives.org informing me that 20 years ago I was at an incredible concert at Elysium in Austin featuring Wreckless Eric, Mike Peters (of the Alarm), New Model Army, the World Inferno Friendship Society, Shonen Knife and the Rezillos. (That was back when SXSW was a music festival.)
I'll never be a Mod Housewife, but riding the busses on the right transit passes about town with Amy Rigby would be next best thing. Grabbing coffee and a well-broiled veggie burger with savory fries while each of us reading the weekly alt rag, zine or lit journal of choice would be next best thing. As long as the town was PoTown, Ore and not London. I know my limits for inclement weather describing in purple prose those dark and stormy days livin on public assistance until the next crap job turns up.
Sunshine just around the cloudbursting corner. In the East Village Polish Bar of yore waiting for a well chosen and preserved bluish shrivelled 'shroom to come on....and it has never ceased being the Summer of My Wasted to Well-Spent Yoot between da rivers and Alphabet City...Roches gone overseas (To Ireland, and me, just apartment sitting with a couple of take-out slices of Ray's Pizza slathered in olive oil and well dusted with fragrant Oregone-O and hot pepper flake...DVD's cued up with Blue Like Jazz and Reese Witherspoon in Wild. Also, an encore quality time viewing of Tichyeh v'Tihyeh\Live & Become a coupla decades old story of adapting to a new life in Amharic and Hebe starring Yael Aveqasis & Siraq M. Sebhaat not yet quite out of primrary school but surely barefoot trying to find his way in a strange land with weirder customs than normal...
A blog entirely devoted to bus rides would be excellent.
Could I put Eric on that? I remember he told me years ago he wanted to do a book where he just took buses all over the UK, I love that Idea!
as a Wreckless fanboy just the thought of this is thrilling.
somewhere between Jonathan Richman’s “You’re Crazy For Taking The Bus” and Ian Dury’s “The Bus Driver’s Prayer” there is a vast, fertile untilled space
We'll get on it!
I love these stories. I visited London a few years ago and mastering the mass transit system, buses and tubes, was a real point of pride. I took one bus that seemed to make another turn every block, I had no idea how the driver ever remembered the route. And it let me out at a huge flea market that ran about 10 blocks, which was a joy to investigate. Keep 'em coming! (also love the Emily Hubley shoutout! I used to play softball with her.)
Wait Jim - was that at the Con Ed field in Manhattan? I know Georgia and Ira were regulars, Todd Abramson, and my brother Michael who was called the Commish. I'm glad you enjoy my English tales, the London bus routes really are a delight!
thanks!
Thanks for reading Peter!
always my pleasure!
Amy, you’ll always be a Noo Yawker. And hence always entitled to pay as you please at the Met. 50 cents seems about right. Don’t let no one tell you different.
Also appreciated Mick Jones being compared to Jesus in a church full of antiquities. Led me, for some reason, to listen to “The Sound of Sinners” (Sandinista).
I do still have my NY driver's license (good for another several years) - 50 cents it is!
I'm glad you liked that Mick Jones bit Jacob, it was a glorious visitation but then I thought "maybe he's hanging out there all the time" and why not, it's a really cool archive.
How nice to be able to see old friends in a new context!
I love looking at it that way Eline, thank you!
Such a great read xx
Thanks Lisa!
I’ve been reading (and loving!) Angela’s book. It’s making me want to revisit Girl to City !
That's great Emily, yes there's a lot of overlap in there!
Great stories! It is one thing I love about the UK and especially London: great, easy public transportation as opposed to here. The freedom of it all! Sam West has quite the acting resume himself so what a cool experience.
It is a revelation, Karen - to be able to ride buses and trains easily and fairly cheaply- I know people here might complain about the train service but in upstate NY it was impossible to reach the train without a car or arrange a car service, AND it cost a minimum of nearly $40 one way to NYC. We went r/t from Norwich to London (about the same distance) for a little over $20, it makes moving around and doing things seem a lot easier. I'll have to watch All Creatures Great and Small with Sam!
alright, mate!
Firstly, glad to hear you fit in and have friends around. Old friends are the best. Secondly, your friend's book looks fantastic, assuming the illustrations on the publisher's site are part of it. There goes another small bit of money, eh? ;) You'll get the minutia of the passes "sorted" I'm sure.
Thanks Scott - yes, Angela's book has really cool visuals!
Good writing as always. Those little day to day details of LDN remind me I really don’t belong in Doha, although we do gave M&S stores with automatic tills..
Maybe cause I've seen you in the UK often, it feels like your place Jim!
You were definitely among your tribe, the rock stars and should-be-rock-stars in London. By the way (and this is a bit off-topic), yesterday I received a random email from ConcertArchives.org informing me that 20 years ago I was at an incredible concert at Elysium in Austin featuring Wreckless Eric, Mike Peters (of the Alarm), New Model Army, the World Inferno Friendship Society, Shonen Knife and the Rezillos. (That was back when SXSW was a music festival.)
Oh wow, 2005, the last year Eric and I went to SXSW (separately)!
I'll never be a Mod Housewife, but riding the busses on the right transit passes about town with Amy Rigby would be next best thing. Grabbing coffee and a well-broiled veggie burger with savory fries while each of us reading the weekly alt rag, zine or lit journal of choice would be next best thing. As long as the town was PoTown, Ore and not London. I know my limits for inclement weather describing in purple prose those dark and stormy days livin on public assistance until the next crap job turns up.
Sunshine just around the cloudbursting corner. In the East Village Polish Bar of yore waiting for a well chosen and preserved bluish shrivelled 'shroom to come on....and it has never ceased being the Summer of My Wasted to Well-Spent Yoot between da rivers and Alphabet City...Roches gone overseas (To Ireland, and me, just apartment sitting with a couple of take-out slices of Ray's Pizza slathered in olive oil and well dusted with fragrant Oregone-O and hot pepper flake...DVD's cued up with Blue Like Jazz and Reese Witherspoon in Wild. Also, an encore quality time viewing of Tichyeh v'Tihyeh\Live & Become a coupla decades old story of adapting to a new life in Amharic and Hebe starring Yael Aveqasis & Siraq M. Sebhaat not yet quite out of primrary school but surely barefoot trying to find his way in a strange land with weirder customs than normal...
Tio Mitchito
Mitch Ritter\Paradigm Sifters, Code Shifters, PsalmSong Chasers
Lay-Low Studios, Ore-Wa (Refuge of A-tone-ment Seekers)
Media Discussion List\Looksee
Beat poetry, thank you Mitch!