Due to a strange confluence of circumstances, it's looking like I'm going to be taking the bus to visit my grandmother today. It's my first time taking a bus in my car-centric city since I was a child. Definitely my first time doing so alone.
It feels like something I should have learned how to do a long time ago, but I've always had to have a car. Until several years ago when I started working from home, we had TWO cars so it was never really an issue. My wife often takes the bus, especially when she goes places where parking is expensive or scarce. But I've just never had to.
So it's a new system to learn. Luckily the city has tons of resources so I'm going to be prepared. I have the app, and I'm going to make an account and set up the payment stuff. I will make sure I have backup plans for if things go away. I'm also nervous about the walking I'm going to have to do because I have a bad knee.
I know I'm overthinking this. The buses are routinely patronized by people who are drunk or drugged out of their mind: it can't be that hard, right? There's a video on the website on "how to ride" that I'm going to watch. I fully support public transit and hate car-centric infrastructure, but I need to get more comfortable and familiar with public transit personally.