Whatever Happened to When in Rome? …
This morning as we were climbing the escalator at the Silver Spring Metro stop we encountered something we see a lot around these parts this time of year: tourists. And as tourists are wont to do in our fair city, they were standing on the left side of the escalator. People who know me, know I have no love for the “tourons,” but I am a reasonable person, and know that local customs are unlikely to be known outside of the area. As I passed the visitors, I said to the adult male, “It is local practice to stand to the right so that others can walk on the left.” A woman in front of me turned around and said “Yeah!” and I told her that they couldn’t know, and it’s not like there are signs.
We continued to the platform to wait for a train and a few seconds later the tourist I spoke to, and his 2 pre-teen daughters, walked near us and I smiled at them. The gentleman said “sorry, we’re not from around here.” I replied “I assumed as much, which is why I was trying to be nice and let you know before you got downtown and someone wasn’t so nice.”
What he said next stunned me.
“You weren’t nice.”
“Excuse me?” I said. “The woman in front of me may not have been nice, but I believe I was very polite,” and I repeated exactly what I said to him. He nodded, but it seemed to me that what I was saying was going in one ear and out the other.
All the while, his daughters scowled at me.
I could have easily titled this “Damned if you do, damned if you don’t,” but I am trying very hard to stay positive.
The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men…
Like people who plan escape routes in case of fire, or other emergencies, I like having alternate commuting routes in case of… well… Metro problems. So, as you might imagine, I was pretty proud of myself for having a back-up plan when I arrived at Dupont Circle Metro and heard announcements about the closing of my destination station.
Confident that I could get home by traveling in the opposite direction and catching a bus at another station, I walked to the platform on the other side, and hopped aboard with a shit-eating grin.
Apparently my smug confidence angered the commuter gods.
Mind your own beeswax …
I love that Sarah and I get to share a portion of our commute together. Whether it be the bus or the subway, it is enjoyable to spend that precious extra time together before going our separate ways to our respective jobs. Sometimes we spend this time talking. Sometimes we read whatever books we may be reading. Sometimes we make out.
We are an affectionate couple. Ok… we are a very affectionate couple. But we aren’t vulgar or obscene. So I was a bit surprised when a woman on the Metro train the other day snidely told us to be “more considerate of the other passengers.”
“Excuse me?” I said looking over Sarah’s shoulder at this harpy sitting behind where we stood.
“You should be more considerate of the other passengers,” she repeated glancing around her as if looking for support.
“All I am doing is showing affection for the woman I love,” I said with a smile on my face, hugging Sarah closer to me.
She mumbled something else about being married and understanding, but continued to cop an attitude and say more stupid things.
“You have a newspaper. Why don’t you read it and mind your own business?” I finally told her.
She rustled her Washington Times and Sarah and I went back to showering each other with affection. A few stops later Ms. Buttinsky slinked off in a huff.