The First of Many Choices

As one might gather my first choice made was to make this blog. I've never been much of a writer nor have I ever attempted to change that. I have however grown tired of the amount of characters one is limited to in facebook statuses and find that my full feelings on a subject can in no way be expressed in such a manner. So rather than being mad at the system I decided to beat it. I am now a blogger. An ever growing number of people writing about..really anything.

I dedicate this blog to being about choices. Everything from the mundane to the extraordinary. I hope to comment on choices ranging from the morally challenging to the art of picking the right table in a restaurant. I would describe myself as a Seinfeldian in that I find great joy in arguing about the smallest of choices in everyday life. Even balancing which pockets you place which objects in is a valid point of discussion. With that being said I will move onto my first topic and hope you all can read my writing and as a valued friend said "If you've made them see from your point of view you've written well." Simple..but I like it.

Picking the right seat on a train may not seem like a battle of superior intellects against the lesser..but it is. I spend a considerable amount of time on trains. Going from Philadelphia to New York City frequently for voice lessons. To get through this hell I have come up with a system of tricks to get the most comfortable situation in any circumstance. Here are a few tips to picking the right seat.

Don't go for the 4 seats facing each other
Don't. Just don't do it. I subscribe to the idea that occasionally less is more and this is one of those cases. I cannot count the amount of travelers I've seen make this mistake. It looks fantastic. Four empty seats and marginally more leg room. There's a problem. If you take one seat that leaves three more(I passed my first grade math class with flying colors) Families travel on trains with great frequency. A mom and a daughter. Parents with a child. Newlyweds etc... The very first thing they are looking for is maximum room. When they see three empty seats they will pounce. Leaving your legs tangled in some behemoth's uncaring thighs. Here's the problem. The makers of the trains have jammed four seats facing each other into a space smaller than that which they would normally put chairs that are back to back in. It has the illusion of being more space but it isn't. Avoid this mistake at all costs. You will never get lucky and you will never be happy there. Only do this if you are traveling with at least two other friends.

Don't sit in the window seat
This is another psychological one. Beat your mind. Avoid the window. It may seem nice. It's not. There's less space and the likelihood of someone taking the seat next to you just jumped exponentially. If you block off the window seat by sitting in the aisle seat people are far less inclined to ask to step by you and inconvenience you to sit there. This gives you two seats to yourself. This is always the ideal situation.

Block off a seat with a bag and miscellaneous items in said bag
When people are searching for seats there's a few things that turn them off. One being a person the other being objects. If you have managed to block off the window seat by sitting in the aisle you've already made one big step towards maximum comfort. The other big step is to use your bag or any items you have with you to put on the other seat. This means that if someone asks you they not only have to wait for you to move but for you to clean your stuff up as well. The visual element of objects obscuring a seat is also a huge deterrent for the average traveler.

Avoid eye contact
I'm from Texas. I grew up in a society with very good manners. Everyone is friendly. That being said unless you want a loud phone talker or elbow room stealer sitting next to you...avoid eye contact when you are seated. Once you lock eyes you connect with them if only on a small level. That small social cue can cost you you're extra leg space and potentially awkward conversation.

Last but not least...sunglasses
This helps with the last rule. People are much less inclined to talk to someone who has sunglasses on. It has to do with the lack of eye contact that keeps people from wanting to do so. I believe it to be incredibly rude to talk to someone with your sunglasses on but at 7 in the morning you probably don't want to talk to the businessman concerned with our nation's finances anyways.

Ultimately if you want to travel comfortably it's best to go with friends. There is safety in numbers and it's far more enjoyable to laugh about a bad situation rather than stewing in it alone. These are my tips to traveling comfortably alone and I hope that by following them you can avoid losing your legs to a clown in a four seater. At the end of the day though I believe this quote to be descriptive of the best way to approach any choice and situation.

"I discovered I always have choices and sometimes it's only a choice of attitude."