Michael Gellman’s article “Running on Empty” was published in the September 2011 issue of Teen Ink. He describes his frequent use of the New York City subway system and how one day he ended up being the only passenger in the subway car he was in. Michael went wild in the car and was jumping around because he was excited, and being alone in a subway car is very rare.

I don’t live in a big city like Michael, but I do realize how rare it is to be alone in a subway car. I would not hesitate to go wild in an empty car and swing from the handrails and shout random things, just as Michael did. It would be a good way to expel some stress, and it would make an awesome story some day. If I decided to start swinging from the handrails and there was a person who saw me, I would do the same thing Michael did, except I would probably say something to the other person. I liked how Michael explained his theory on how he managed to be the only person in the car that day. It was very fun to read, and I related to the story well.