I was one of those women who wore sneakers and a skirt to work

Never Done: I was one of those women who wore sneakers and a dress to work

Commuting by subway turns out to be 99% logistical. It's 90 degrees out, but air conditioned on the train and in the office and you will be super sweaty from running practice after work so you don't want to get chilled but you don't want to wear your nice little office sweater over your sweaty self, but you are already carrying a work bag and a gym bag and by the way, walking a mile in those red flat sandals isn't as comfortable as you thought it would be but you're already carrying a work bag and a gym bag and a mug because the first day a work you used a paper cup from the Executive Director's office. So you look around to see how other people do this and you see that most women carry two bags and about half of them wear sneakers with their skirts. (I'd say that includes the frum women, who tend to wear sneakers with skirts all the time, not just when they are going to work.)

Oh, I miss living in a place where I can get to work by bike or car. I miss tossing an extra bathing suit in the trunk just in case I can go to the river after work. I miss listening to the radio and offering to pick something up for someone and riding with the wind rushing past me and pulling right up to where I am going. I know the subway system is some kind of miracle of engineering and city planning, and it's all environmentally cool and shit, but we are all smushed together like proverbial sardines, and let's face it: we all look drab in our sneakers and skirts.