David mentioned an interesting observation his NYC buddies made while once visiting DC - he said that they were completely freaked out by the Metro, due to the complete silence on the packed train. I thought about that on my ride to work this morning, thinking how we all had a day full of distraction and chaos in front of us. Although the 'code' is to avoid looking or speaking to people, it's much nicer to think of it as a collective gift - everyone giving their fellow riders some peace & quiet before we are inundated by the clamorous workplace.