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Dr. Philebrity: Does This Bus Stop At Ikea Street?

Dear Doctor Philebrity,

Is there a bus to/from Ikea? A shuttle? Is there any way for people without cars, or those trying to stay carbon neutral, to shop for Orpidingers and Mulgars without taking a totally expensive cab? Please advise.

—Needing a Gungleganger

After the jump, the Doctor ponders the inherent melancholy of taking the bus to Ikea, and offers some advice we could all use.

Dear Needing,
As I write this, our research department is working feverishly to find out which route will take you to Ikea, so your Gungleganging needs can be, once and for all, met.
But while the information superhighway is churning the how and wherefore, allow me to intrude in your personal life for a moment. I hate to be so nosy, but don’t you have any friends? Here at Philebrity, we hear from a staggering variety of lonelyhearts, but there was a certain sadness in your query that frankly, threw me right off.
Imagine moving into a new place, alone. Imagine decorating it, alone. Imagine realizing a need for a certain piece of furnshing, and then having to go get it, alone. On the bus, no less. It’s a thought I personally do not like thinking about anyone.
And it gets to the heart of something I’ve been wondering about a lot lately: While Philadelphia is in the grip of socio-cultural upsurge, I still get the feeling that lots of people wander through their workaday lives with no real sense of community whatsoever. The upside of the major change in Philly these days is that, for the first time in a long time, people are choosing to live in the city, with all that it offers. The downside? They’re living the same dreary existences they did when they were in Conshohocken, or Buffalo, or wherever. It seems that for every new apartment building or condo that goes up, there’s a lion’s share of folks that simply don’t interact with the community: They park their cars in the adjacent lots, they drive everywhere, they frequent the same bars as if they were still commuting back and forth from, say, Manayunk, and generally live a suburban life… in the city.
It should go without saying that this is shameful. And as a Doctor, I can also tell you that it’s bad for you. So my advice to you, Needing, would be as follows: Make a friend. Hell, make ten friends. If you’ve just relocated to the city, build your own welcome wagon of transplants and natives. You might be able to do it via Myspace, or a community messageboard. Hell, you can definitely do it by hanging out at a neighborhood bar or coffee shop. Philadelphians are notoriously standoffish right up until the moment when they aren’t any more. Walk the streets and what you find might surprise you. You may even find �� gasp! �� a ride.
Oh, and if you must know, the 25 Bus will get you as close as you’re gonna get.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 15th, 2006 at 3:32 pm.

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Dr. Philebrity: Does This Bus Stop At Ikea Street?

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