Travel travails

The stupid autowallahs have become the bane of my existence. Not a single day goes by when I don't get into an argument with them - over money, the route, it's always either of the two irritating matters that make me hate these idiots more than anything else.
So car it is for me. Coz the other option - chartered buses - is almost as annoying. I'd always associated chartered buses with civilised office-going janta, aunty-uncles who were well-versed with etiquettes of travelling together. I should have known better, coz cheaper it might be, it is only second to blueline/DTC buses as far as the crowds go.
I once had an idiot sit next to me...the bugger boarded the bus while it was still waiting to move out of the compound, there were plenty of seats but where did the asshole have to come and sit, right next to me. Put off as I was by that, I forgot about it the next instant. In the course of the journey, this 40–50-something jerk kept pushing against my arm. Needless to say that I was seething with anger. After repeated scowling meant solely for him and even telling him in so many words to sit properly, did he get the message.
And you know what, women travellers shouldn't get any benefit of doubt either. They are not like the OMG-I'm-the-oppressed-babe-in-the-woods kind of traveller. They just want complete and absolute control of the buses they're travelling in. They're the queens of harassment.
They keep their bags on the seats, refuse to remove it to make space for another harried co-passenger. They'll perch themselves in a way, you'd thank your starts you didn't get a seat next to them. And by far the most irritating habit, they'll keep fidgeting. I mean, really, these women just can't sit straight for the life in them!
I'll just drive down....

Life's like THAT!

Leisure

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
- William Henry Davies
(1871-1940)

For once, I'm happy to say that I'm getting time for all of that and more. The mad rush that life's been the past two years, it seems as if now I'm sailing..watching all the scenery glide by me. And it's a terrific feeling!
I once watched a movie called Wimbledon, where the protagonist says ''all my life, I thought my life would come to an end if I stopped playing. But I was wrong, since it only began when I stoppped'' . I'm afraid I thought pretty much the same. I always thought journalism was my life, that if I stopped pursuing the profession, I would be a nobody. My job was, to a great extent, my identity. Then one fine day, I quit.
I had had enough. I didn't even think twice. Didn't spare a thought to my 'career'. All I craved for was some semblence of sanity in my life. I was tired to being at work mentally, even when I was out of it. Of my heart stopping momentarily when ever I saw 'Office' flashing on my phone.
And most of all, I was sickened by this terrible sense of foreboding that clung to me as soon as I pushed open the doors of my office building.

If there was ever a piece of advice that I passed on to the younger generations, it would be to never give unnecessary credence to your work. Work is a part of life, not your life.

My present workplace is a warm, friendly place. There lot of bonhomie among employees, a concept I never saw at my previous workplace. So much so, that the first day, I was bewildered.

And the work moves at a relaxed pace. There are deadlines alright, but you don't have to kill yourself to meet then. Which however, doesn't mean that they are relaxable, only that you're given the right amount of time and environment to meet them.

For those who've known me. I think it should suffice to say that I look forward to going to work each morning.