Most of the people I end up recognizing on the bus are the drunks/druggies acting crazy. I've been recognized as the same and it's both humoring and embarassing... there's supposedly a youtube vid of me singing FIDLAR songs wasted and high as ****.

Might be worth it to chat with the dude in your case though. If you're on friendly enough terms to greet each other you might make a friend.

It's possible. Sadly, it seems as though he doesn't ride the bus on my way home too often anymore. Hope he is well though, as he seems like a down to earth guy.

There's a guy I always pass if I walk in the direction of downtown in the early evening—he's obviously walking home from work at those times. The reason I notice him is he's always holding the mic of his iPhone earbuds in his mouth to talk to the person on the other end. He looks like a fucking lunatic doing this but appears to be an ordinary business guy. I'd miss him if I didn't see him.

I'm glad I'm not the only person that thinks about this type of stuff then. It's just weird to think how much different going to work / going home would be if there weren't familiar faces along the way. It's honestly just one of those things you don't normally think about until it sort of dawns on you I guess.

I think about it quite a bit. I think about the crossing guard I see down the street from my house. I still remember the guy who always wore the maroon flight jacket all the time on the train I took home from work a decade ago in Chicago. Or the big guy who used to wear a giant fur coat on my el commute a few years before that. Or the guy who used to obsessively buy scratch tickets in the morning in the convenience store below my apartment in Boston fourteen years ago.

Just curious, have you ever gone to college? I feel like after a certain point I got into a comfortable relationship (being on a greeting level as you are with headphones man) with those people to the point where either them or myself would try to get to know the other better than before. Could be a case of depressing lifeafteruniversityitus but I'm just curious tbh.

Yes, I went to college.

Also, I'm not on a greeting level with the headphones guy. He's just someone I pass if I'm walking the right direction at the right time. I've lived in large urban areas for most of the past twenty years (which includes college) so there are generally a lot of people around. The people I remember are just the ones that stick out. It would be really weird to try and befriend them in some way, both now and back when I was in college.

Be like "what's up my nigga?" If he's white he'll be like 'what?' Instant BFF's. If he's black you've got some esplaining to do but after that (I trust you can do well with the situation), but after that, instant BFF's.

There are only white and black people, btw. Mixed races and hispanics don't count.

I used to take the train to work. I did it for years. There were quite a few people I'd see on a daily basis, and every once in a while I'd strike up conversations with them. Sometimes I was sorry I even bothered, but every once in a while I found gold. The best was one of the conductors. He'd sit and chat with me the whole ride (about 30 minutes), not even caring that he had a job to do. He'd go on about his latest computer build, and I'd tell him about my band/music stuff. One time I forgot my phone on the seat I was in, and realized just as the train was pulling out of my stop. I quickly turned around as the doors were closing, and my conductor friend was standing there. I made a phone/hand gesture and pointed to where my seat was. He gave me a thumbs up, and the next day there he was to greet me at my pickup point with my phone. I tried to give him $20 for a reward, but he refused to take anything. One of the best chance friends I've made in a long time. Miss that guy.

I just ate a whole pizza. It isn't even noon. **** yeah.