My love of the bus has always had its roots in a deep craving for community. I have written extensively (here and here and here and here and here, for starters) about how my family’s bus-based life has enriched our sense of community and our connection to our city and neighborhood. And it’s not just about sharing the ride. Living without […]
Several of the writers I most admire say that they write to make sense of the world, to explore topics that trouble them or make them curious. Through their wisdom, I have begun to understand that writing isn’t about having answers; it’s about looking for them. Hallelujah (!), because 1) I have no answers – […]
Elliott Bay Water Taxi opening day festivities What: A “community celebration” of Seattle’s only floating bus When: Sunday, April 27, 12 PM – 2 PM Where: Seacrest Park How much: The party and rides are free on the 27th. (The Water Taxi usually costs $3 but is free with a bus pass of any denomination.) […]
From Miles in Everett: another option for car-free skiers. Another great transit-to-the-slopes option that wasn’t mentioned in your column last month is connecting Stevens Pass shuttle from Sultan. It’s possible to take one of Community Transit’s 270-series routes from Everett Station to the Mountain View Chevron just east of the Sultan Park and Ride, then […]
This time, I’ll start with the stick: The victim and the vigilante In the middle of the night on Thursday/Friday, one of my younger brothers happened to look out his kitchen window in time to catch two people breaking into the car of my other younger brother (they’re roommates). He (the first little brother) ran […]
I’m Carla Saulter (aka, “Bus Chick”), a writer and rider from Seattle, Washington. I am obsessed with Toni Morrison, my hometown, and public transportation, in that order. I’ve been riding buses in Seattle since childhood and haven’t owned a car since March of 2003. I am married to a hardcore bus nerd from the Motor […]
What I will remember about this year, in addition to the obvious: Growing stuff Over the past several years, as my climate anxiety has increased, I have become more and more interested in plant life. One of the ways this has manifested has been in an increasing obsession with house plants. I have channeled much […]
One thing I’ve heard repeated a lot this year is that Covid has clarified what is important. This doesn’t resonate much with me, in part because I have never really struggled with perspective—certainly not since watching my mother die prematurely from a prolonged and horrific disease—and also because I haven’t reached the same conclusion as […]
What does it mean to love a place? In 1936, my paternal grandparents moved to Seattle. They were young and Black, fleeing the poverty and various forms of terror in their home state of Kansas. They would experience both (poverty and terror, that is) in their new home, but they did not know that then. […]
OBC, n: Original bus chick. A person who has actively chosen transit over other forms of transportation for several decades; an extremely experienced transit rider. A couple of years ago, King County Metro installed a bus shelter memorializing Beulah Dyer, a lifelong Seattle transit rider who passed away in 2011, at the age of 90. […]