Overheard on the Bus

The past few days I've heard some pretty irritating conversations on the bus. Maybe it's just my mood, but I longed for silence rather than getting an earful of these chats. Thursday, two women seated behind me talked (too loudly I might add) about everything from a teenaged son's difficulties at school to a neighbour's "perverted" ways. She said the man, in his seventies, and his somewhat younger but larger wife like to go around naked in their house and even for swims in the backyard. Oh geez. I don't want to picture these things, particulary early morning. Actually the one woman did most of the talking, while the other said things like "uhuh," and "really." That bothered me too -- people should not dominate conversations, or just sit there while others do so. The quality of the conversation was below par in so many ways. I longed for my mp3 player, which I had left at home that day.

This morning, a more innocuous conversation between two men nearby, but still I wished for quiet.

On the way home this evening the most annoying of all: a young man about 18 boarded the bus and sat beside me. He was on his cell phone, and remained so for half an hour, and was still talking when we both disembarked. Where do these people get the money for these daytime lengthy conversations? What's even worse, he was obviously trying to keep his voice low and he actually covered his mouth. He was trying to talk privately right beside me on the bus! How irritating! It only made me wonder what he was saying. I caught the words "going with other men" and I figured out he was talking to a young woman, who was probably not his steady girlfriend, but he who he wished was. Painful!

Then -- get this -- he took two other phone calls in the middle of this sad romantic conversation. He asked his beloved to hold, and answered two calls along the lines of "I'm coming now. I'll be there in a few minutes." It sounded like they were guys he was meeting up to do something with soon. He spoke more loudly and stopped covering his mouth. Oh dear. Then he went back to his girlfriend and his private voice. This guy clearly has some moves to learn on the way to dating success. But really, I would have preferred to have no part of this, and to just look out the window thinking of my own daydreams and what I would make for dinner.