Lots of people like to talk about Stony Brook and say it's a huge commuter school, which is true, but let's not forget those of us who dorm and live over the river and through the woods. Getting home is such a struggle in itself, but add in the dreaded train ride and it becomes an Olympic sport.
One of the more tedious aspects of traveling via the Long Island Railroad is planning your trip around it. Knowing that you'll have to make a few transfers and squeeze between seats means that you're going to have to pack strategically. There's no way that your going to haul your giant laundry sack between trains. You'll probably have to break out that rolling bag and smoosh as many things in as possible.
Once you have your things packed, figuring out a train time and making that train might just be the most difficult part of this whole situation. Take it from someone who has missed almost all of the trains she books; there is a checklist you have to go through before stepping onto that train.
When looking up times, make sure you have the right date!
It's super confusing when you're looking at train times from yesterday.
Give yourself time to get to the station and buy a ticket!
The lines for buying tickets are always insane and you don't want to run to the station just to wait on line for a ticket. Plus, if you don't buy one on the platform they're super expensive on the actual train.
Get on the right train.
I know it sounds stupid but it's a mistake I've made. Nothing is worse than trying to take the train home, getting on the wrong one and having to call your boyfriend at 11 p.m. to pick you up from the Port Jeff station (shout out to my boyfriend -- you the real MVP, babe!) It's an embarrassing ordeal that you should avoid at all costs.
The train ride in itself is probably the most relaxing part of the trip because you just have to sit ad relax and wait for your stop. The transfer at Huntington is obnoxious, no doubt, but nothing compares to the horror that is Penn Station.
To put it in perspective for people who have never been to Penn Station, it's what I would imagine the purgatory is like. Every corner of Penn Station is crammed with frantic travelers, each carrying their own special scent. Penn Station is doable if you're there for thirty minutes tops, but anything more than that is torture.
Once you make it out of Penn Station and on your connecting train home or drive home, you're smooth sailing. Just remember to take a deep breath and a big cup of coffee before making your trip home or back to school.
