To Cab It or take the L Train-You Decide

I've discovered the source of most of my sweaty 'pits in Chicago is riding with cab drivers. When I first moved here, I was totally intimidated by the L train (and let's face it, I still am), and trying to navigate the city's bus system totally requires a PhD in figuring out complicated stuff. (Although if you see the people on there, you know that's not the case.) I'm still trying to figure out how every non-English speaking person in this city can figure out public transportation, while I'm almost always riding the wrong color train headed the wrong way.

Yesterday, I had a nail appointment in the South Loop, so I took the Red Line south, and then realized the Brown/Purple/Orange Lines are closer. So I texted Mike, asked him what color and direction I should choose, and then I totally rode it by myself! Holla! I felt one step closer to getting my Chicago card.

Normally, I would have taken a cab, but earlier in the day I had a near-death experience after taking one to a doctor's appointment I had. The cab driver was very nice, and his cab only smelled like cigarette smoke (It's when you add urine and sweat, that I want to puke.) He was so busy talking to me, he ended up turning the wrong way down a one-way street. I couldn't figure out why everyone was honking and waving. I waved back, assuming it was Chicago hospitality. I quickly realized what happened when we were staring straight into the front grill of a semi truck. Luckily, we flipped around quickly, and got out of the way.

Wowsers.

I then had to pay $11 for my near death experience. The L train is only $2.25. Sure, the L occasionally jumps a track, or someone gets robbed, but I've never been on one that went the wrong way.