The Commuter Diaries

Let's talk about the UIC social experiment nobody signed up for: commuting to campus.

First off, commuter students don't get enough credit. Our school days start long before we even set foot on campus. I mean, who wants to have to head out the house at 8am for an 11pm class?

In a perfect world, commuting would be something to look forward to. Clean trains, interesting interiors with art and decor, jazz music playing from the speakers... But we live in the real world, where commuting wages a constant war on your sanity and sense of smell (seriously, why is there always such a weird smell?).

(Photo: ID 473743489 © Lightfieldstudiosprod | Dreamstime.com)

You know the drill. It's 9:40am and you're waiting on the blue line platform, after you've already wasted about an hour getting there. You can't even hear the music you're playing because of the cars racing on the highway. Or maybe you can, because you have those fancy noise-cancelling headphones... Good for you. Anyway, you're rolling your eyes because you already know you're not gonna make it in time for your first class. You check your phone, desperately hoping to see a "CLASS CANCELED" email. Spoiler art: it's not canceled.

Of course, you enter the blue line as all the seats are already taken. Time to stand by the doors. Don't worry, it's not gonna be peaceful for long. In about 3 stops, it's gonna get so packed to the point where you're breathing down somebody's neck, and somebody's breathing down yours.

You finally arrive at Halsted. Sure, you might be a little late. But you know what? The sun is out; you get to see your homies... All's good. Until it's time to go home and you have to hop on the blue line AGAIN, this time for rush hour, making your morning ride feel like you've been traveling first class in comparison.

Dear residential students, appreciate how you guys get to roll out of bed, put on a hoodie, and show up to class 5 minutes before it starts. That's a luxury here at UIC. Because some of us have to cross half of Chicago just to be equally bored in the same lecture hall. And I couldn't help but wonder, if I'm spending more time navigating the CTA than studying for my actual classes, shouldn't that count towards my GPA?