I was waiting in the Fremont BART station for a few friends to arrive before heading to the A's game. During my fifteen minutes of standing around and looking suspicious to the patrolling security guard, I had some time to observe my surroundings.
I noticed how the faster somebody attempted to obtain a ticket from the vending machine, the longer it took to obtain. I noticed how the entire station rumbled whenever a train arrived. There would be a slight pause after the rumbling and then a mass of people would flow down the stairs, through the fare gates and out to the parking lots. This was the "calmly crowded" phase of a distinct three-phase cycle.
There would be a slight pause and then the "mad rush" phase would begin. Experienced commuters, who were obviously aware of the timetable, but still late, would come racing in and scramble up the escalator to the platform. This was the most deadly time to be standing in the lobby and I stood aside to avoid becoming road kill.
After the departing train rumbled away, the station would enter the "utterly desolate" phase where no one was around, except for the wary security guard and me. My friends finally arrived during this quiet period.
While they were purchasing their tickets, a guy came through the gates towards me. He was a cut figure of a man, about my height, with tan skin, black hair and green eyes. He wore a white t-shirt, brown slacks and backpack and carried a folded scooter in his left hand. It took us a second to recognize each other, but once we did, we smiled and greeted one another warmly. He was an old college classmate who had graduated a year after me (so many years ago).
On the train, we had a chance to catch up a little. I learned that he'd been working in Fremont for the last five years and had bought a house in San Leandro three years ago. We talked some shop and reminisced about the "good old days". It seemed strange that a guy from Hawaii could be content living in the East Bay, but from our brief conversation, I sensed he was genuinely happy. I'm glad. It's always good to see the people you grew up with do well for themselves. It made my day.
