BUS RIDE
One of the quirks about livin in Lagos is the fact that at one point or the other, especially if you don't have a car, you can get caught in the rain. But the way you view the whole situation determines how you will end up.
If you get angry at the elements, and start boiling - you will sizzle alone, but if you try to see the comic aspect of it all, like I did yesterday, then your have successfully avoided a high B.P. and reducing your life span by 20% more, unnecessarily.
I was already late by the time I joined the queue for VI bus at Tollgate. After waiting for another forty-five minutes, and watching the third Obalende bus load, I walked up to that bus and entered, thinking that I was doing the wise thing to avoid the rain that the dark clouds were predicting.
Before we got halfway, the driver parked and brought out a black nylon (or plastic garbage bag, for all the phonerized people), tore it width-wise, and started cellotaping it to the left side of the bus. Needless to say that it was not strng enough to withstand the heavy rain and the relentless wind - the last two rows in the bus got soaked to the skin. One woman was really angry, and began threatening the bus driver. She even started calling a police officer acquaintance.
We at the back justdecided to see the humor in the situation. We were smiling and cracking jokes about it all - the rain being pushed in by the nasty wind, everyone getting drenched, the freezing temperature of the drops, everything. I was even urging the driver to be moving alongside a BRT (Long single deck red bus, London style, that exists now in Lagos) bus so that it would shield us from the onslaught. The other woman was insisting that the driver must take her all the way to her office as she could not go back home soaked.
I wish I knew the end of that story, but all I will say is that the lady took one look at the cup and pronounced it half empty, while we took a look and accepted it as half full.
How many danfo bus drivers care if their passengers are comfortable or not?
How many of them even want to know if you can breath properly, with two poeple's elbows poking your stomach and the smell of the man's sweat already overbearing your subconscious?
How many bus drivers will actually go out of their way to protect you from the rain?
She was really shouting and shouting, whereas she was just a little bit wet. We at the back really suffered the peltering from the rain.
To top it all, I had on my black ballet shoes, which meant that I had to feel the wetness the whole day.
It went straight to my head.
But she might not learn her lesson soon - Nigeria is the happiest country in the world mainly because we are ready to adjust when suffering comes, no matter how terrible. I could not believe it when I was told that we had a panel in the country that one can report to, like the Consumer goods panel. I was wondering how long they had been in existence, and if they were just collecting salaries.
God dey sha...
If you get angry at the elements, and start boiling - you will sizzle alone, but if you try to see the comic aspect of it all, like I did yesterday, then your have successfully avoided a high B.P. and reducing your life span by 20% more, unnecessarily.
I was already late by the time I joined the queue for VI bus at Tollgate. After waiting for another forty-five minutes, and watching the third Obalende bus load, I walked up to that bus and entered, thinking that I was doing the wise thing to avoid the rain that the dark clouds were predicting.
Before we got halfway, the driver parked and brought out a black nylon (or plastic garbage bag, for all the phonerized people), tore it width-wise, and started cellotaping it to the left side of the bus. Needless to say that it was not strng enough to withstand the heavy rain and the relentless wind - the last two rows in the bus got soaked to the skin. One woman was really angry, and began threatening the bus driver. She even started calling a police officer acquaintance.
We at the back justdecided to see the humor in the situation. We were smiling and cracking jokes about it all - the rain being pushed in by the nasty wind, everyone getting drenched, the freezing temperature of the drops, everything. I was even urging the driver to be moving alongside a BRT (Long single deck red bus, London style, that exists now in Lagos) bus so that it would shield us from the onslaught. The other woman was insisting that the driver must take her all the way to her office as she could not go back home soaked.
I wish I knew the end of that story, but all I will say is that the lady took one look at the cup and pronounced it half empty, while we took a look and accepted it as half full.
How many danfo bus drivers care if their passengers are comfortable or not?
How many of them even want to know if you can breath properly, with two poeple's elbows poking your stomach and the smell of the man's sweat already overbearing your subconscious?
How many bus drivers will actually go out of their way to protect you from the rain?
She was really shouting and shouting, whereas she was just a little bit wet. We at the back really suffered the peltering from the rain.
To top it all, I had on my black ballet shoes, which meant that I had to feel the wetness the whole day.
It went straight to my head.
But she might not learn her lesson soon - Nigeria is the happiest country in the world mainly because we are ready to adjust when suffering comes, no matter how terrible. I could not believe it when I was told that we had a panel in the country that one can report to, like the Consumer goods panel. I was wondering how long they had been in existence, and if they were just collecting salaries.
God dey sha...
Comments
To be specific, what I miss in them are those guys who usually get up to sell stuff. I dunno if some of them go to a school of comedy or something, cos the stuff they say used to crack me up almost every single time.
Like, there was this day I was travelling in a long distance bus, and this guy was selling chicken in the bus (fried or roasted, I'm not quite sure). So he brought out this piece of chicken breast (wrapped in a transparent nylon) and proceeded to tell us how this is the best part, cos there's no bone, bla bla bla. He kept on pulling out different parts of chicken (one would have thought it was a biology class) and giving them names, extolling their attributes, you get the picture.
Then he pulled out something.
It was the head of the chicken.
And the legs of the chicken.
But wait, this was no ordinary package. You see, the legs of the chicken were stuffed into the mouth of the chicken.
Then he said, "...this is the part that the white man calls 'walkie-talkie'...."
Man, see the kine laughter wey carry me eh, it was so freaking hilarious.
And it didnt help that he pronounced it 'walking-talking'....
By the way, will they have people that sell stuff in them BRT buses? I think not. Pity. I mean, commuters could do with some comedy in their lives, heaven knows they need it.
On an unrelated topic, Daydah or wetin you call yourself, better increase the frequency of your blog posts, or else! Why are you hoarding, you want to create artificial scarcity, abi? Dont let me show you my red eye o. Or my blue tooth.
@Xi: I like to travel by bus, but I do not frequent the molues - the long ones you just described. i am talking about the compact Agege bread type buses with four seat rows only. There is definitely no space to stand not to talk of hawk goods.
I would really love to see your bluetooth...it mait help.....
Advice... Use ur car.