On your marks. Get set. GOtransit!
Every day at approximately 5:45pm EST (pending any delays) my 5:19pm train from Union express to Oakville arrives on platform 1. Nothing particularly funny or odd in that, except that precisely 5 minutes before this happens, a spectacular display of quirky human behaviour occurs . As soon as we roll through Clarkson, a modest group of like minded people rise from their seats, fold up the copy of the Metro they were reading and shuffle toward the exits. You see, as soon as the doors slide open this select group sprint to their cars at a blistering pace. It is as if hell itself was in human form chasing them down. Tailored suits, high heels, $500 Italian leather loafers and briefcases cutting through the air at a torrid pace. Personally my favourite part of this is right before the doors open, the ‘Jockeying stage’ where they pace in their places, anxiety taking over their bodies, their senses heighten, pulses race. Have you ever been to the track? Picture the horses in the starting gate, pent up waiting to escape. Now picture the horses wearing business clothes. It is exactly like that. Another fun activity is to imagine what is going through their minds when they sprint away. What if it is more than just “I have to beat this crowd”? What if it was something like, “Oh man, I have such a fear of open space, I have to run as fast as I can to get into my car”? Or perhaps, “Come on, come on, I have to get home because I put a roast in the oven when I left in the morning at a ridiculously low heat and I don’t want it to overcook”? Regardless of their motives, I surely enjoy watching this group sprint, it is a good ending point of each day. Perhaps tomorrow I will try to race one, I’ll let you know how it goes.
5 months ago • 1 note
