Commuting Thoughts

I encounter the most interesting people during my commute. Last week, I was in queue at the FX terminal with an elegant middle-aged woman. She was tastefully dressed in a crisp white shirt with denim pants and she was carrying two boxes of Krispy Kreme donuts. The most remarkable thing about her - no disrespect to the donuts - was her facial expression. It's a cross between a terror Math teacher and a strict nun principal from a Catholic school.

It's as if she was in on a secret, a terrible burden of truth, that happiness is nonexistent. Her mouth actually formed a downward arc. And her eyes tell you that she is not a person whom you would want to cross. At all. Not even a tiny little bit.

And of course, I was stuck with her in the front seat of the FX. I often find myself in these tricky situations, you see. She held the door before boarding and told me, "You go in first, I'll take the outer side." It wasn't a request but an imperative statement. And I'm quoting her verbatim. So cross out that description about the Math teacher. She could have been an English teacher. Or a CAT commander. Whichever.

I was trying not to doze off during the whole trip. I didn't want to lean against her accidentally. How uncomfortable was that whole traffic, can you imagine? When the FX finally pulled over at the Antipolo terminal, Mrs. Don't-Cross-Me held out a hand and tapped the driver in the forearm. "Where are you going to end up? Are you stopping here?" The bewildered driver didn't answer right away, I'm assuming he doesn't get to be tapped and addressed in English very often. He eventually said, "Dito na lang po ang babaan." And I finally got off (unscathed, thankfully).

I thought about how horrifying about it would be to end up having someone like that woman as a mother-in-law. Think of all the cold stares, the disapproving eyes. Whew. The horror. As far as I'm concerned, another reason not to get married. That topic's a whole other entry by itself. Heck, it could be a whole book. ;P