Claustrophobic in the T
Friday, June 23, 2006
claus·tro·pho·bic(klô'strə-fō'bĭk) adj - Relating to or suffering from claustrophobia, Uncomfortably closed or hemmed in.
And T refers to the Boston local train service much like El (L) in Chicago.
So, the hot Summer Sun burning down all day long were pouring those IR rays into Earths atmosphere. And after all the hours put at work, walking through the park was "The Moment" of the evening, for what the "T" had in store was an experience.
Haven't gotten used to AC and infact even though I have one fitted in my apt, barely use it. One thing I realised today though, was that it is a must in any public transport. For pumping the air out, if not for the Conditioned Air it provides.
Jam packed train travel is usual @ or after 5 pm. 6 Pm makes it far difficult so decided to board the train anyways ... thereby going against my usual of skipping 1 or 2 trains and waiting for the rush to subside. Luckily I stood by the door but as soon as it closed, realised that the compartment doesn't have a working AC . It was freaking hot inside as if the oven outside was not enough.
Air inside the bogie smelled awful to say the least. It smelled of breathing people, Mc Donald fries, KFC barbeque chicken sause and a mixture of some other um ... smell ... . I tried my best to concentrate on my God of small things but all in vain. The nostril size grew with the body reacting, giving all its got to extract some Oxygen from the otherwise CO2 filled closed-space.
People going against the regular ... using their mouth to exhale instead, just pumped in more and more CO2 causing a local warming. As and when the train stopped, I would get out to grab a fresh breath (or maybe more) of air - one of the advantages of standing adjacent to the door. Although it was the air inside the tunnel I was inhaling- it was bliss. Running into another compartment was on cards but an Engineering guess - it would be the same everywhere- stopped me from.
So, got down at Charles MGH, MIT, Central Sq., Harvard, Porter Sq.,Davis Sq. and to my final destination Alewife. Tell you - I was concentrating more on the station count than the pages I flipped. Each time people getting out talking to themselves "Dont you have to get down now" ? For which I answered each time - No .. gotta huff and puff all the way till the last stop. And dont smile just cause you got a sigh of relief, I know I would have the last laugh... :D
One of the gifted few to laugh the last .... @ the last stop.
Archived in : Boston T Chicago L Summer US Arundhati Roy
Posted by Rajesh @ 7:51 PM; PERMALINK,
