As is often the case when we read the LilSubwayCrybaby blog, we have no idea if Lil is jerking our chain, or actually living among the so-called Mole People several feet under Manhattan.

She writes:

Yes, there is an entire population that lives underground, literally underground in Manhattan. At first, I thought it would be easy to find these people. I would simply slip into a subway tunnel and walk around until someone tried to stab me. Not so easy. I backpacked for a good three days before finding my first entrance. I later learned there are only four entrances into the real underground in the entire city and this is the reason it has remained to secluded.

In our first interview with a fellow train blogger, we had a chat with LilSubwayCrybaby.

Trainjotting now puts the spotlight on SecondAvenueSagas.com. SecondAvenueSagas covers the underground world of New York City subway with depth, insight and humor. It’s the brainchild of Benjamin Kabak, 25, who grew up on the Upper West Side, the child of two New Yorkers. Kabak spent four years in southeastern Pennsylvania studying at Swarthmore College. Ten months living in D.C. convinced Kabak that New York was the only place for him and, more importantly, that the DC Metro is a far inferior subway system to the one in New York.

When not blogging about the subways, Kabak blogs about the Yankees at RiverAveBlues.com with two of his friends.

TJ: What compelled you to launch SecondAvenueSagas.com?

SecondAveSagas: I launched Second Ave. Sagas in November of 2006 shortly after the Democrats took over the House and Senate. At the time, a few of New York’s elected representatives in Washington were making noises about securing federal funding for the area’s transportation and specifically the Second Ave. Subway, and I knew that with Sen. Schumer owed a few favors for his work on the DSCC, the city and the MTA were lined up for a transportation windfall. Ostensibly, the site was going to chart the progress of the Second Ave. Subway, but as subway line construction is painfully slow, the scope of the site has evolved to encompass all the news, views and quirks at the MTA and the New York City subway.

TJ: What’s your day job?

SAS: For the next few weeks, at least, I’ll be wrapping up my job in the legal department of a major sports organization. After a month off, I’ll be starting NYU Law School at the end of August. The blog will not suffer though.

TJ: What’s your favorite subway line?

SAS: For no reason in particular, I’ve always been partial toward the 2 train. I grew up just a few blocks from the express stop at 96th St., and I love the speedy ride downtown. The train, stretching into parts of three boroughs, is great for people-watching. The F line is a close second simply because everyone else hates it and the ride through Brooklyn to Coney Island is great for sight-seeing. You can’t argue with a view of the Statue of Liberty from the highest spot in the system near Smith-9th Sts.

TJ: What’s something about the NYC subway system no one else knows?

SAS: I wouldn’t say no one else knows this, but the vast majority of New Yorkers are unaware of all of the shuttered and abandoned stations in the subway system. The abandoned City Hall stop is a beautiful station with majestic Gustavino arches and chandeliers. It’s been dormant for over six decades, and only astute subway-watchers and Transit Museum members know that it’s open for tours now and then. There’s a graffiti-filled station, long abandoned, at 91st and Broadway. The 18th St. station on the East Side IRT sits empty as well. The hidden and forgotten nooks and crannies in the subway system are what make it so fascinating.

TJ: Which of your posts seemed to be the biggest hit with readers?

SAS: People loved an early post I wrote on the subway-themed condoms the city gave out for free. They also enjoy a few of the quirky ones I’ve written about the 75-year history of the Second Ave. Subway and some of Massimo Vignelli’s designs for the system. Those are my favorite to write as well. 

TJ: If I were MTA president for a day, I would…

SAS: …run and hide from a vicious public after ensuring myself an Unlimited Ride MetroCard for life . In all seriousness, a day would hardly be enough time to enact many changes. I would probably open up the agency’s books to outside auditors and reporters. The MTA is in need of greater financial transparency. I would try to ride the subway lines and speak to the riders about their wishes and needs.  While the recent Rider Report Cards are a clear step in the right direction, I think the MTA Board needs to combat the impression that no one is paying attention to the riders. A meet-and-greet at various points in the system, while symbolic, would go a long way toward creating a bridge between straphangers and administrators.

Trainjotting will periodically cyber-sit with other members of the rail-blogging community to check out what’s in their head. For the inaugural edition of The Trainjotting Interview, we cyber-chat with the blogger behind LilSubwayCrybaby.com, an offbeat blast of magic realism in the form of a blog chronicle of bad behavior on the NYC subway.  

One of LSCB’s recent pearls of wisdom advised riders on the best way to handle having fallen onto the subway tracks as the train is barrelling toward you.

Lilsubway actually recommends running towards the train to try to intimidate it. Chances are good it will back down. If it doesn’t, remember it is made of aluminum, a very soft metal. Trains are basically big pussies, so whatever you decide, chances are you’ll be A-okay. Love! 

As LSCB might say Boobam, here it goes.

Trainjotting: Where did the LilSubwayCrybaby name come from? What’s a LilSubwayCrybaby? Am I one without realizing it?

LilSubwayCrybaby: I was taking the 6 uptown with a friend of mine, who actually helped me start the page, which wasn’t even a blog at first.  Anyway, she had this idea to start a website that would counter theknot.com.  I place for people to bitch and rant about relationships.  This is a great idea, we were going to call it lilcrybaby.com. 

But then I figured a site just about the new york subway would be much more successful… and there are sooooo many cry babies on the subway, so boobam, lilsubwaycrybaby. 

Are you one? Yes.  Most people are. 

TJ: What compelled you to start an NYC subway blog?
LSCB: The power of Christ.  No, lol.  I initially wanted to start a forum, but didn’t think there was enough traffic potential for something about bitching on the subway.  So I just started telling my stories.  The point is to make fun of people who throw a fit on the subway, but I guess I throw most of the fits. 

TJ: What’s your day job?
LSCB: I work for an internet company and cruise the net.  I can’t wait for a real life holideck to come out so I can just step into the net instead of looking at through my computer. 
 
TJ: What was your most popular post?
LSCB: I really have no idea.  I’ve spammed gothamist and craiglist from time to time, so those posts have gotten tons of traffic.  Organically, I get most traffic from the Cottonelle post.. egh.  The Wheelchair post got some comments, as did my rant about Williamsboard.com.
 
TJ: “If I was the MTA commissioner for a day, I would…:

LSCB: Shut down the 1,2,3 or the 4,5,6 and have a race day.  I would charge everyone $10 to come to the platform and watch.  I would serve beer and have bbq. 

The trains would go flying by at like 90mph.  I would personally drive one of the trains.