The Road

Ops, English nga tayo! Tignan naten kung gaano ako tatagal magsulat ng English!

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Life is very tiring for someone who commutes everyday. Back in college, where I had classes almost everyday, the only means for me to travel is to take the PUVs. I don't have a car, nor I don't know anything about teleportation or flying. So the most obvious thing to do is commute using the PUVs. They come in buses, FXs, jeeps, tricycles, and pedicabs and trains. I've taken a ride in each of these PUVs and I've gotten much stories from them during almost the entirety of my college life.

There's actually a lot of interesting stuff to see and experience when you travel on PUVs. There's a lot of things you can experience and also observe, which you can't usually do when you drive. Aside from sleeping and counting endless hours when in stuck in traffic, you don't get to do anything else except observe everything that's in your surroundings. I am glad and thankful that I've not experienced any life-threatening accidents nor have I been robbed or pick-pocketed in any of these PUVs.

There's just this annoying stuff that bothers you for a minute or two.

How annoying?

How about this: almost everyday of the week, you get to ride a jeepney that's passing by the gasoline station to fill-up. It has become more than annoying for me. It's a curse I tell you, A CURSE!!!

I have lost track of the times this happened but it happens often. There's probably thousands of jeepneys in our area and even in Manila, but I always ride on the ones that are filling up their gas tanks. It usually happens when you are in a hurry and you've got minimum time allowance. It's just annoying how that often happens but there's just no choice but to get used to it.

I can't ask every jeepney driver before I ride.

Me: "Manong, maggagasolina po kayo?"
Manong:"Ah, oo eh."
Me: "Sige, sa iba na lang ako sasakay."

It's annoying sometimes that you have to pick a jeep and that particular jeep had to be the one to gas up. I've tried that before. I was suppose to ride the first one to come, but I just let it pass by, thinking that it would be the one to gas up. I chose the second one. It was lucky for me to just pick the second jeep because it was the one that had to gas up. Pretty lucky eh?

I guess there's no other way but to pick a jeep after the gas station and pick the one that has already been there. It's the surest way to ensure that the jeep isn't going to gas up.

Other jeepneys just can't assure you an all-out stop-free ride. They just have to stop at any possible passenger. Every person on the side of the road is a potential passenger. So naturally, drivers stop by them even if they don't have to ride that jeepney, which is quite a drag.

And sometimes, it just needs a bit of convincing for the passengers to ride. And it works! Well, not for me though.

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When the LRT2 was not yet up, I had to take the bus for almost everyday of my commuting life in college. It's the most comfortable and carefree means of transportation from school to our place. You pay the conductor and you sleep. One more good thing for the particular bus line that I ride is that the station is just a few blocks away from where we live. The bus us usually empty and I get to sit where ever I want to sit.

There is this one time that I rode the ordinary fare bus and I was somewhere at San Juan area when I felt a tug at my leg. I was sleeping and my head was bowed down, with my arms as my pillow. Since the windows were open, I was able to put my elbows outside and use the open window and my arms as pillows.

So there I was, sleeping until I felt a tug and a feeling that someone was touching my pocket. I opened my eyes and I saw the hand of the guy sitting next to me, exploring my legs and my pocket area. Thinking that it's a pick-pocketer, I waited for it's next move. I was surprised that his hands went past my pocket and headed straight to my zipper.

It was DICK-PICKER after all. So I hurriedly went up and looked the guy straight in the eye with my eyes blazing with anger. I stared at him as if laser beams would shoot out of my eyes [and at that moment, I wish it did], and I stared until he was so nervous that he stood up and took off the bus. I don't really know if he was supposed to take off at that area or he was just afraid of being pulverized. The guy was just thin and I think I could've taken him out if he didn't do the right thing [which is to get out of the bus]. But being the good guy that I am, I just stared at him furiously and waited for his next intelligent move. And he was lucky that I kept my cool and didn't give him the reason to have a plastic surgery.

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There was this one time that I rode the FX. I was at the back and the music was good, something like New Wave. And I was really into the music so I was lipsynching with the tune. The guy in front of me was much more into the music since he was singing with a soft tone off his mouth. That was just fantastic. A mini-concert. I took my mind off the music since I might end up being his second voice.

That made me wonder if it's me or there are just an ample amount of people who wants to sing along with the vehicular radio, whatever it's tune is.

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Regardless of whatever kind of nuisance or challenge the road gives to me, I'd be there to face it. You can't really go anywhere that much unless you take the road. And of course the helicopter, and the airplane.

I really need to practice that teleportation thing that the Super Saiyans are into. That sort of stuff is gonna make me rich!!!