Dec. 7, 2007: Geeks Aboard The Bus

Story And Photo By Joe Zlomek

The white plastic SAP employee badge, attached to the zipper of the young man's nylon coat, announced his name as "Tim Ehrlich." A black laptop computer bag that stood on the floor of the bus -- pinched upright between his legs to keep it from falling, and also emblazoned with a gray-and-white embroidered SAP corporate logo -- introduced him as one of "The Geeks."

The Geeks is a handy, but far from unkind, term. Being identified as a Geek is often a source of pride, particularly among those who are. Today (Dec. 7, 2007) it summarily described a group of workers from SAP America -- the global computer software and services company, headquartered in Newtown Square PA -- who each weekday ride SEPTA's Route 104 bus between their offices and the 69th Street Terminal connecting the transit system's suburban lines to those of Center City Philadelphia.

The bus-riding Geeks come in all shapes, sizes and ethnicities. Their unifying characteristic, beyond name badges and portable computers, is their youth. With few exceptions all seem to be in their 20s. They are obviously intelligent and gifted: a firm like SAP attracts the best of its needed breeds, and their hiring testifies to the competence of their various skills. On the way to and from work, most are dressed in what fashion designers usually call "business casual." Light-colored dress shirts, open at the collar but worn with an undershirt; dress slacks, usually in dark colors and sharply creased; and black dress shoes, abound as the attire de rigeur.

The lack of which is what Tim Ehrlich so noticeable.

Unlike his colleagues crowded into the early evening, days-end ride east toward 69th Street, Ehrlich was dressed decidedly down. His head and hair, which a photo on his employee badge led one to believe is a close-cropped light blond, was covered by a gray, peaked ski cap. Beneath his jacket he wore a blue T-shirt that promoted some sort of college newspaper, blue denim jeans, and sneakers. He surely appeared ready for the weekend.

He appeared oblivious to passengers around him, too, which is not to say he was rude or uncaring. He was simply ... involved. In his left hand Ehrlich held a Dell Axiom PDA, its screen glowing with backlit brightness. His right manipulated a thin metal stylus back and forth across the PDA's face. He may have been listening to music. He may have been playing a game. He may have been messaging a friend. He may even have been working on the way home. But whatever captured his attention did so fully; he never looked up from that screen once in almost 40 minutes of travel time.

Then the bus's pre-recorded address system proclaimed its arrival at the terminal. Ehrlich slipped the stylus into a slot at the top of the PDA, slipped the PDA into his pocket, and slipped the computer bag out from between his legs. In one swift motion, he bounded from the bus and into the exiting crowd.