Questions

Asking questions is a skill and that's how we learn new things. The kids that ask a lot of questions turn out to be the smart ones. But turning what is a confident statement into a question right at the end is a skill in itself. This morning the girl who served me in the coffee shop, demonstrated that skill quite flawlessly. But I still feel she can't beat a pro who almost does that everyday and so perfectly and skillfully that he almost makes us believe (every single time) whatever he is saying is absolutely correct. But then at the end of the sentence he makes that sound like a question. I'm talking about someone who a couple of the readers would also know about. Going back to this morning, so the girl took my order and was repeating it very confidently, while looking at the croissants and said Almond croissaaaaannnt...? Making it sound like a question. Instead of saying we don't have the plain ones do you want the almond one instead. She saved herself from saying them 10 12 words she just turned that statement into a question which was quite impressive.

Friday morning, (after I'd posted my last blog) when I got on the DLR from bank station, there were a lot of empty seats yet a man holding a  bag still decided to stand. Why would you even do that? The train was literally empty but he wanted to stand and balance the bag between his legs. I think he was practicing for the next week because he knew the trains will not be as empty as that and most days he would have to stand. So he wanted to get used to it. Or may be he had the bag on the seat in his previous train and the bag wanted to stand so the man also gave it company. I wanted to fully enjoy the luxury of being able to sit when I could on London's transport. I think we'd enjoy life more if we enjoy the moments that we can. If we worry about what's going to happen we can't really enjoy the moments we're in. Whatever is going to happen in the future will happen anyway in most cases, by thinking and over thinking it we can't change it and we don't help ourselves. So it's best 'not to think about it'... A bit of philosophy in the morning.

This morning, I was picked up in a brand new Toyota Hybrid taxi which looked quite nice from inside. Himesh (the driver - not to be confused with the bollywood actor, singer and music director) was driving it with a lot of care. I know he cared about it because he had a towel placed on an arm rest in the middle of the front seats. I think he must've thought that the leather on that arm rest may get worn out due to extreme use so he covered that up with a yellow towel to prevent that. He didn't talk much apart from when I asked him to stay left he said, "cool" (sick guy, dropping the cool lingo) . And when he was about to drop me he asked a question, "all day this road is open". I understood that perfectly and I knew that was a question too. I replied with a yes and he then said, "thank you sir, have a good day". Himesh if you ever happen to read this blog, I forgot to tell you, you have a nice car..

The same 7.10 am train that used to be quite empty during the Christmas and New year days has been busy since yesterday. So much so that if I didn't play tactically, I could have been standing as the carriage is almost full. A couple of them had got their bags on the seats too. I always stand where the trains door is going to be when it stops, that means I usually get on before others and get to pick a seat. So the technique is to remember the point where the door is going to be and stand there instead of waiting at a random place and don't let anyone jump the queue.

I still haven't fully understood the reasons why people put their bags in the seats next to them. Is it that they treat their bags like humans?Do they pay for an extra seat so their bags don't have to be put away in a the racks above because they (the bags) might feel neglected or claustrophobic? Do they even have a name for their bags....? Or is it that they don't want anyone to sit in the seat next to them so they can enjoy extra space? I think it's that. In this morning's train a lady opposite me and a man on my left both had their bags on the seats next to them. Because the train was busy they didn't succeed in keeping the people standing and their bags enjoying the comfort of the seats for long. What I've noticed is that when there's people getting on the train they (the people with the bags on the seats) either pretend they're sleeping or very busy with their phones, tablets or laptops in an attempt to make anyone not want to disturb them or ask them to pick their bags. The man on my left played the sleeping trick but it didn't work as he still got asked to move his bag by an older man who knew he has more rights than the bag. I could tell the bag owner wasn't happy and he gave him a dirty look.

I'll share a quote that I like... “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”– Martin Luther King, Jr.

There won't be a new blog until 27th January 2020 as I'm not going to be traveling to London. But if you miss my blogs try not to think about it and read my other 18 blogs I've already posted by clicking on 'my train journeys' at the top of the page.

Have a great day
Adeel