An observation
It's pretty common knowledge that most commuters aren't very happy people, at least during their commute. I know that it's true because I see it all the time. Every morning on the train to university, people stand shoulder to shoulder, looking miserable as they get lurched along in collective silence to their various places of work.
Given the conditions that CityRail puts people through, one can hardly blame them for being in a slightly off mood - peak hour trains are often overcrowded and uncomfortable at the best of times. But then this happened yesterday on the morning run into the city - I was sitting by the window, listening to an old episode of 2Sense, and something particularly funny happened on the show, to the extent that I couldn't help but laugh out loud. I tried to hold it back, but every time I managed it something else would happen to add to the hilarity and I couldn't help but at least chuckle, a grin wide across my face. The part that gets me though is that when I looked up, still laughing, a guy standing in the aisle beside me looked back and shook his head in an extremely disapproving manner, like I'd just done something very wrong, like I was the piece of dog crap he'd just put his shoe in. It nearly wiped the smile right off my face, to have, in a sense, been silently disciplined just for being happy.
Is this some sort of collective herd-mentality, where any sign of individualism, any different sort of behavior, is immediately seen as abhorrent? In an atmosphere of such misery, what's wrong with bringing a little happiness back in? Making people laugh? I swear, I am so going to try this on the last day of term - I am going to wear my foxtail, in public, on the morning commute during peak hour. All the way from my starting station, on the train, through Central and on the bus, all the way to campus. Let's see how many people I can make smile :)
Given the conditions that CityRail puts people through, one can hardly blame them for being in a slightly off mood - peak hour trains are often overcrowded and uncomfortable at the best of times. But then this happened yesterday on the morning run into the city - I was sitting by the window, listening to an old episode of 2Sense, and something particularly funny happened on the show, to the extent that I couldn't help but laugh out loud. I tried to hold it back, but every time I managed it something else would happen to add to the hilarity and I couldn't help but at least chuckle, a grin wide across my face. The part that gets me though is that when I looked up, still laughing, a guy standing in the aisle beside me looked back and shook his head in an extremely disapproving manner, like I'd just done something very wrong, like I was the piece of dog crap he'd just put his shoe in. It nearly wiped the smile right off my face, to have, in a sense, been silently disciplined just for being happy.
Is this some sort of collective herd-mentality, where any sign of individualism, any different sort of behavior, is immediately seen as abhorrent? In an atmosphere of such misery, what's wrong with bringing a little happiness back in? Making people laugh? I swear, I am so going to try this on the last day of term - I am going to wear my foxtail, in public, on the morning commute during peak hour. All the way from my starting station, on the train, through Central and on the bus, all the way to campus. Let's see how many people I can make smile :)