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The ultimate joyride

JAN 17 - After my tuition, I had to return home. So, I decided to embark on a Safa tempo. It was not like I had never travelled by a Safa tempo before. Actually, I do that quite frequently and for some strange reason. I always get a kick out of seeing people travelling in it. I boarded a tempo which was just almost full and set out for home.
Inside were people from all walks of life. Some too poor to afford other expensive means of transportation while some were hard set on saving money, hence preferring a tempo rather than an sexpensive taxi. Seven people were travelling along with me. Three ladies, an old guy, two young lads and a middle aged woman.
One young man, to my utter disgust, was digging his nose a little too violently. I passed him a sharp reproachful look but it seemed to make no difference. It looked as though a terrible war was going on inside his nose, for he tugged at something for a second and then again, maybe determined to win the war, started rummaging through his nose, bending his head at weird angles. I was shocked, or rather very amused at his lack of self-consciousness and the “Who cares, it’s my nose” attitude. Lips curled upwards and with cold humor I looked away, not being able to bear the scene anymore!
A loud bang was heard and the tempo came to a halt. One of the young guys’ got down and two more women entered in and the vehicle started its slow but steady pace once again. A lady came to sit beside me and in the process stepped on the toe of another lady, with her pointed heels! At first, the lady grimaced in pain expecting a “Sorry” maybe but was surprised not to have got one. Then she started staring daggers at the woman who had stepped on her toe. I say, if only looks could kill, we would have had a corpse amongst us or beside me.
The lady was still throwing scornful looks at the other woman who remained unperturbed when I overheard the conversation of the two ladies who were there in the vehicle from the beginning. From what I gathered, they were talking about their children and how less they studied. One of the lady’s daughter had failed her SLC examination for the second time and she was expressing her sorrow to the other lady. The other lady, who looked as though she couldn’t care lesser was none the less showering her companion with sympathy! I smiled to myself, looking at the irony of that situation and the deceitful behavior of human nature!
Another bang and the old man got up; slightly shaking and trying to make out if the amount he held in his hands were enough for the fare. He staggered out of the tempo and as he did so, I thought I heard the “Puck Puck” of a chicken. For a split second, a weird idea struck my mind. I actually thought the old man was making the sound. Maybe, he was insane or an incarnation of a hen. As fast as the thought crossed my mind, I shut it in my thick skull wondering how my imagination could get so bizarre. I laughed at myself again, not knowing that I was loud enough for the others to hear! All eyes were on me! I grew red and looked down where I saw the sharp beak of a hen! Now, this was getting wild. I tried to remember if I had had too much chicken for dinner the previous night, but in vain. My eyes were glued to the animal and I could think of nothing else but the fact that I was travelling along with chickens!
A third bang, and one of the women was ready to get off. She bent down and pulled her belongings out and voila, out came the chicken! Now that was a relief! No more “cocky” dreams for me! My insides were really churning for I was about to burst out laughing but remembering the last time I laughed, I controlled my emotions. My stop was nearing and it was time for me to leave. I gave a last look at everyone; each person in his/her world pondering about god knows what! I banged the ceiling of the tempo. I got off, paid my fare and the tempo moved along. I walked home, smiling and thinking about my joyride!Posted on: 2004-01-18 02:49

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