Warning: This is going to be about a lot of things ..So be ready to connect the dots.
The Underground is where the most happening parts of the day are..
Its where I get to observe Human behaviour and come up with wonderful theories on survival and human nature. Life unfolds in all its glorious colour..
Its amazing how much you learn in a short span of time.. I know where to stand such that the train doors stop right in front of me, Which carriages are better to get into it in terms of shorter commutes to the next train, How best to negotiate a slow moving co-traveller whos walking annoyingly in front of you...
All this while remaining a People watcher.. The Clothes, The Faces, Anything out or the ordinary, Accents, The Running feet..
There was this one day when I really wanted to get an earlier train and it looked touch and go..As I ran through the corridor I saw this little child staring open mouthed at me..
And as I ran past him he asked his dad, why is she running ? :)...And he said .."To Catch the Train"..
It might seem like nothing out of the ordinary. But it was then that it dawned on me that I was being watched too :)
Of late The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has been my constant companion. Hint of some free time and am off reading away, Aurther Dent's adventures as he escapes into space while his home,(and or ) Planet Earth has just been destroyed... What can I say about this great book when anything that I might will only sound cliched.. Its such a fantastic read... Sharp, Witty, Philosophical, Super Intelligent.. So with this heavy dose of humor floating in my head, all I can do is smile.. So there I was standing, leaning against the wall, Handbag tightly clasped and book in hand, reading ..
The train doors were still open and people were hurrying in making the most of a few extra seconds, ..
The average Londoner is very polite, waits his turn in the queue, doesn't push, no fuss absolutely..
But theres something about the Rush hour which bring out the worst in people :)..
There was this lady who ran her Buggy over the foot of a gentle man standing at the door.. and then came the argument..
But what was funny to me was not the argument , but the fact that everybody standing in the immediate vicinity started looking toward the ceiling.. The Act of disengaging oneself from the Argument :)..even if you have never done it before you would know when confronted by this kind of situation that the best way to disengage is by looking up..So we all looked up..Blank stares.. The Universal Body language saying this fight is yours and yours alone :D
And just as I was looking up with everyone else, there was this stuuuupiiiiiiid thought from the book that crossed my head...And I had this overwhelming urge to laugh.. And im trying to stifle the grin.. I think I came out looking a little idiotic...:)) If only it was that easy!
Meena
PS - Why does survival sometimes bring out the worst in us..Maybe we are all not so different after all.
