Welcome.
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Book
  • On Cinema
    • Essays on Film
    • Top Film Lists & Reflections
    • On Terrence Malick
    • Nathan's Thesis
  • Photography
    • Death in Paris
    • Venizia
    • Napoli
    • Havana
    • Roma
    • Seoul
    • Milano
    • Shenzhen
    • Taipei
  • Men I Trust
  • About
  • Press
  • Speeches!
  • Upcoming Shows
  • Films

For Night Operators: Tips on Sleepers

5/15/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
Let’s talk about this.

1. The Big Picture

First off: remember to think about the systemic view. Yes, it’s annoying that you have to use part of your break waking this person up. You’re thinking, Gosh, why are they so lazy?

Appearances can be deceiving.

Everyone looks lazy when trying to get valuable sleep, which all humans share in enjoying. Often, you know they aren’t lazy precisely
because they’re trying to get rest– which they’re likely doing because they have things to do during the day, like going to the day labor facility in the morning. They want to be properly rested. Folks without such pursuits will be out partying, not obsessing over finding the longest bus routes to sleep on. 


And, let’s be honest: shelters suck. They involve bedbugs, theft, restrictions and noise. Buses, incredibly, are a safer and cleaner option.

Some of the sleepers I’ve known have gone on to rehabilitate their lives and later come up to me with the good news; a number of those stories are on this blog. Others have setbacks the city just won’t set aside the resources to address, and so they remain on the streets for years. Others have developed coping mechanisms and addictions as temporarily solutions to their problems, but which have put them in more severe straits. Still others simply have a standard of living different than my own, and I try not to judge them for that.

My worst self thinks they’re unfairly getting a free ride through life, unlike the rest of us, but that opinion is woefully lacking in perspective: remember to note the difference in quality of life between you and them. You’ve got it good. They don’t. They really don't.


For whatever reason, the City of Seattle has decided not to fix the problem of housing its own citizens (despite paying enormous lip service to the idea), so for now, until they do, a slew of civil servants have to pick up the slack– we operators, the detox crew, fire department, social workers, shelter crews, volunteers and more. For tonight, let’s just take it a trip at a time.

2. Option One: Wakey Wakey

Look, you only have one non-destination rider tonight. Maybe you let them sleep. Maybe you don’t. Personally, I give so much of myself while I’m driving that I like having some time alone to recharge at the terminal. I do ask everyone to leave. I never demand them to, and I don’t yell (make loud sounds with anything except your voice– raised voices sound too much like anger. Try a crescent wrench or Perrier bottle against a stanchion, perhaps; your flashlight is also an option). I also try to refrain from explicitly telling them to leave at the outset, starting instead with the softer, “it’s the last stop.” When that doesn’t work I do say, “it’s time to step out,” or “we gotta step outside here. Thanks for understanding.” “I’m just asking you outta respect.” 

They will react slowly, but don’t you when you wake up in the morning? Be ready to back away quickly; they may react in self-defense, assuming you’re an attacker. Have the doors open. Be closer to a door.
Is your leader at a terminal having trouble waking a sleeper? Go up and help them out. This is dramatically easier and safer with two people. I'll try to preempt things by announcing as we approach the terminal, "Alright my friends in the back, we're almost at our last stop, it's time to start waking up. Just givin' you a heads up."


If there is another bus at the terminal in front of me, then I attempt to wake sleepers and put them on that coach. I’m operating on the thinking that that driver will then do the same at his/her next terminal, thus sharing around the sleeper load for the evening. If there’s no other coach, I don’t bother, because where are they going to go? Either way, this is your call. You are entitled to a break if you want one, and if you can take a break with strange men lurking nearby, I look up to you. Maybe one day I’ll rise to your level. You're at an advantage because you get a longer break, rather than wasting minutes waking people.

3. Option Two: Why Bother

But that’s just me. You’ve got three guys in here tonight. Maybe you just let them rest, because why bother with all this. It’s too much hassle, and they need the rest. You’re a better (wo)man than I, friend. I want to be like you. But I have a thirst for alone time at the terminal that I haven’t been able to eradicate. This goes against my own philosophy: If you can’t change something about the job, rewire your brain so you’re okay with whatever it is. 

I’m trying to get there with sleepers, and I’m not there yet. I know that if I let them stay on my bus habitually, my bus will become overloaded with non-destination riders to the point that I won’t have room for riders who actually need to get someplace, and I also know there will be a negative impact on the sanitary condition of my bus.

I also like maintaining a sort of consistency: when they see it’s Nathan driving, they’ll think,
Oh, he’s nice… but he doesn’t let people stay on. It's predictable in a way I hope minimizes conflict. They know what’s up. “I just need some alone time, you guys, no hard feelings. You’re welcome to join me again in ten minutes, or if you don’t want to wait, there’s that bus in front of me.”


If I didn’t have to worry about sleeper overloading, I don’t think I would much care about whether they’re on or not, but I’m easy to find, and I do the same route nightly, and I really like decompressing at the terminals. I think I have anxiety over waking them because it’s a moment of potential conflict, though I have to admit I’ve never once had a physical altercation issue with a sleeper. 

Hopefully you’re better than me and none of this irks you, and you’re able to achieve a level of compassion I hope to one day get to. Maybe you’re awesome, like Paul Margolis is, and you can take a nap with six sleepers on board. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!

4. Option Three: Work With Me Here

You can meet them halfway. Tell them they can stay once it’s after midnight, when there’s less buses. Or let them stay on at one terminal, but let them know you’ll ask them to step out when we get to the other end. I would do this on the 5, and it got me a lot of goodwill.

Or just check in on them, if you feel it’s safe to do so, but let ‘em stay. I feel better when I do this third option. You can also let them ride throughout the evening until the terminal before your last trip, at which point you check in on them to see if they’re awake, asking them to leave not then but at your next and last terminal (5th and Jackson, in the case of trolley work).


5. Minimizing stress

When a sleeper gets on, try not to spend the entire trip stressing about the fact that you’ll have to wake them up later. Don’t think about it. Just don’t. You’ll figure out that guy in the back later. For now, just think about driving. Because one of three things will happen:
  1. You’ll get to the terminal, and he’ll leave without issue or you’ll wake him and he’ll leave without issue.
  2. You won’t be able to wake him, and will call someone to come do that for you. You are always entitled to this.
  3. You won’t be able to wake him, and there’s not enough time to call for assistance, and he’s not being a bother, so it’s not a big deal because it’s a short break anyway and you’ll figure it out later– at the next terminal if you like, or at your last terminal.

6. For the Good of the People– and Yourself

Don’t pass a zone just because it has intending sleepers. There may be someone there who actually needs you. Some sleepers suddenly have destinations at a certain point in the night. Marcus rides buses at night, but he has a job he has to get to in the morning. Will likes cruising around, but he has a secret spot of his own he eventually heads to for better rest.

Also, you want the passengers to like you, in case something happens.

Also, if something happens on your bus– you want your bus to be crowded. Because that means more people between you and the incident, and more people who can help you.

Go out there and gather people. It’s counterintuitive, but it will help you.

See you at the terminals!
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    RSS Feed

    Subscribe

    Nathan


    -What is this blog? Check out the explanatory first post, or read the  front-page Seattle Times writeup here! 

    Here's a one-page crash course with links and highlights: Nathan Vass 101

    My Book is Finally Easy to Purchase!

    -For New Bus Drivers: Thoughts, Tips, and Stories
    -How to Drive the 7: The Complete Care Package

    Popular posts:

    Only have time for one story? Try these. 
    -The Day The Earth Stood Still
    -Le Park de Cal Anderson
    -
    21st Century Man
    -One Last Story (Video)
    ​
    -Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Great & Terrible 358
    -I'M A LIGHT-SKINNED BLACK WOMAN!
    -The Final Flurry: Index
    ​
    -Scroll down on this sidebar to "On the Street," below, for more highlights~

    Personal:
    -International Examiner Interview (Plus a word to my fellow Hapas!)
    -
    Full (Redmond) Circle (includes event gratitude writeup index)
    -Surviving the Social Desert: Nathan on High School
    -With What Time We Have
    -My Seattle
    -On Second Acts
    -Yves Klein, Color of the Heavens
    ​
    ​-Popular Posts from 2018, with Commentary
    -Nathan Vass, 2019 Washington State Book Award Finalist
    -Nathan on the Elliott Bay event: Parts I, II, and III
    -Seattle Magazine / Third & Cherry
    -Pretty Sure I Don't Deserve This
    -How I Live Now
    -Escaping the Overlords: Nathan on Comcast
    ​
    -I Am Now Ten Years Old
    -Confession
    -Flowers in a Pool of Blood: Thoughts From an American in Paris
    -Paris, One Year Later: A Personal Perspective
    -The Transgender Ban
    -Nathan on the Las Vegas shootings: On Terror & Other Things
    ​
    -The Birthday That Almost Never Happened
    ​
    -Nathan Takes a Day Off:
    Part 1 (See Nathan Run);
    Part 2 (Nathan Gets Excited); 
    Part 3 (Nathan Sounds Like Morgan Freeman)
    -Rad(iation) City
    -La La Land & What Los Angeles Means
    -Reparations
    -Names Nathan gets called! A list in three parts: 1, 2, 3
    -Where and How it All Began
    -How I Write the Posts, and Why
    -Chaleur Humaine
    -A Story
    -What Not to Say​
    -In Praise of Silver Hair
    -You're Been a Good Friend of Mine
    -...And a Splendid New Year!
    -Nathan Converses With His Colleagues: Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8... and 65

    Political:
    -What's In a Number (Trump's legacy)
    -Praise Island (Biden's win)
    -The United States of Floyd
    -The Great Male Detoxification Project
    -The Day the Music Died
    -Kindness In the Days of After
    -Understanding Love & Hate During Trump Nation
    -More than Health, More than Money
    -Seattle, Center of the Modern Universe
    ​
    ​-What We Did, Today
    -This Story Has Nothing to do With Donald Trump
    -Don't Be Scared of My Friends, Part I
    -Don't Be Scared of My Friends, Part II
    -The Music Isn't Dead (Yet)
    -Nathan Actually Talks Politics, Pt III: Keeping the Music Alive
    -Pulling Our Weight, Part II: Addressing the Homeless Laziness Question
    -Getting Some Diversity Off My Chest
    ​
    -The Veterans
    -Islamofriendia
    -Be at Peace, Mr. Garner. We Will Love the World For You
    -The Streets Regard Ferguson
    -How do You Change the World? Thoughts on Violence
    -Cowboys of the New Age: Status & Respect in the American Ghetto
    -A Boy Named Hamza: Thoughts on Hate in Three Parts 
    -It Used to Sound Like This

    ​On film & art:
    -Trois Objets 1: on Michael Mann's Heat
    -Trois objets 2: On Antonello da Messina's Annunciate Virgin
    -Trois Objets 3: On East of Eden
    -On Laura's Book
    -Nathan on Seattle's Waterfront: Before and After
    ​-Nathan's Films of 2019: Top 2 Plus 23 Runners Up (photos, trailers, analysis & more)
    -Once Upon a Time... in Dreams: On Tarantino, Violence, and Transcendence
    -On Finishing Men I Trust
    -The Lie & How to See It: On Hate, Despair & Hope in Contemporary Film
    -
    Notre Thoughts
    -Addressing Despair: Nathan on First Reformed
    -How Evergreen Became Irrelevant
    -October 2018 show breakdown: all the deets 
    -On Color Darkrooms
    -The Non-Bailers: Thank You to the Cast & Crew of Men I Trust, Pt I
    -People I Trust: Thanks to My Cast and Crew, Pt 2
    -Nathan's Overlooked Films of 2016: Trailers, photos, analyses
    -A Bus Driver Reviews the New Bus Driver Movie! 
    -My Films
    -Song to Song and Malick: The Cutting Edge
    ​
    -Nathan on Wet Lab Prints
    -Kehinde Wiley: The Morning After
    -Nathan the Friendly Hermit, Part I: Nathan Gets Pasty
    -
    Nathan the Friendly Hermit, Part II: Pastier and Pastier
    -Birdman, (a) Film of the Decade
    -
    Gone Girl: Fidelity & Subjectivity
    -On Gravity and Identity
    ​-Primary Colors with Music: Andrea Arnold's American Honey
    -Sicario: Why Visuals Matter
    -The Martian: On Intelligence in Pop Culture
    -About Elly
    -Best films of 2015: Trailers, photos, analyses
    -Selected writings on films released in 2014, 2013, and 2012. 

    On the Street:
    -It's Complicated (on Rainier RapidRide)
    -Jessica Lee
    -Ah, Volume
    -Eulogy for the Damned
    -King Travis
    ​-The Great and Terrible Fifth & Jackson: An Ethnography
    The Veterinarian: A Story on Grief in 4 Parts
    -The Glow
    -Decent Street: Kendrick, Gender, Lingo, & the Good Man Problem
    -The Shake'N'Bake: Parts 1, 2, & 3
    -
    Pulling Our Weight, Part I
    -Pulling Our Weight, Part II: Addressing the Homeless Laziness Question
    -I've Been Sainted
    -Dominique The Mystique
    ​
    -Deserve, the Concept and the Song
    ​-Gangsta Phone Strategy, Deep Breaths & Kindness Rising
    -The Joy of Bus Driving
    -The Knife's Edge Dance
    ​
    -The Soulful Stench
    -"Everybody Need to Quit Acting Hard and S**t"
    -The Mother's Day Apocalypse
    -Ode to the 358
    -"I BET YOU APPROVE UH GAY MARRIAGE"
    -The Question
    -By Himself
    -Appreciation
    -Banter in the Nighttime
    -The Nathan Train
    -The Benevolent Roar
    -Truthfulness, the Final Currency
    -Love is in the Air
    -Surfing the Sparkling Wave
    ​-Saddest Music in the World​
    -Rainier & Henderson, Baby!
    -Sheeeeeeyyiitt: Strategies for Day or Night
    ​-AngryNice I (Love Through Frustration)
    AngryNice II: Tran Chimes In
    AngryNice III (We've All Felt It)
    -Love (Hurting From a Lack Thereof)
    -Hip to be Joyful
    -Future, Present, Past
    ​-Changing Awful
    -Harsh
    ​-The Nameless Heroes
    -The Break-Up
    -Tropic Of
    -Figuring it All Out in the Bullpen
    -Leaving Small Talk Behind
    ​-She Did It On a Monday
    ​-One Day, My Friend
    -I Am Now Two Years Old
    ​-The Harder Thing
    -Poker Face Practice
    -The Great Freeze

    For Bus Drivers!
    --How to Drive the 7: The Complete Care Package
    -
    -It's Called Working
    -
    -Bus Driver Appreciation Day: Coronavirus Style
    -The Swagger I Love: Thoughts on My Fellow Operators
    ​-A Love Letter for My Colleagues: Exercises and Stretches for Operators
    -What I've Learned From Other Bus Drivers
    -Rest in Peace, Breda Monster
    -I Don't Know What a Trolley is, Part I
    -I Don't Know What a Trolley is, Part II
    -Verbal

    Archives

    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Book
  • On Cinema
    • Essays on Film
    • Top Film Lists & Reflections
    • On Terrence Malick
    • Nathan's Thesis
  • Photography
    • Death in Paris
    • Venizia
    • Napoli
    • Havana
    • Roma
    • Seoul
    • Milano
    • Shenzhen
    • Taipei
  • Men I Trust
  • About
  • Press
  • Speeches!
  • Upcoming Shows
  • Films