Feisty Bus Ride!

Today I responded quite out of character, to a fellow passenger....

I arrived at a vacant position, just at the "step-up" approaching the back of the bus (a location I quite like as it provides a good view of the journey ahead as well as other passengers) only I was prevented from taking the seat as the woman sitting near to the window had her bag spread across the spare seat.

"I'd like to take this seat?" I simply stated.

Adopting a curt tone, she retorted, "There are other seats aren't there?" which made me more determined to sit in the seat of my choice, so in answer to her reaction I held my stance. "I like this position, and I believe each of us has purchased one ticket to occupy one seat." She swiped her bag onto her lap and indignantly mumbled to herself, making me feel most unwelcome, as I sat beside her.

I then found myself mirroring what she had continued to do with her bag. Angrily wallop it down on her lap and wriggle it to one side and then to the other, before settling. What was I doing? I allowed principle, to get the better of me.

I put my head in my novel, which I continued to read until it was time to exit the bus.

The woman to my side, did not say a word once I'd sat next to her and busied herself by completing crosswords.

My journey to work was not straight forward, so this tail-end experience was like the icing on the cake!

The regular bus arrived at the usual time. Like any other day, the people that got on, I recognised. The day started well...

The driver, approximately two thirds of the way along the route, decided to stop the bus to examine one of the dual-doors that seemed to be sticking, remaining in a closed position. He tried to adjust it and got a cloth to wipe his hands. He could not fix the door, only made it worse, but proceeded to the next stop where he announced that this was the end of the journey!

Thanks to First Bus I either have to make up the time or loose that many minutes pay for being late!

If only the woman on the bus, that I'd waited 30, long minutes for, that took me the final stretch of my journey to work had been content with one seat, I would have just experienced a disruptive journey and not a selfish passenger too!