I think I am going to start writing about my bus rides. There is always something happening. Sometimes funny, sometimes irritating, sometimes just plain strange.

Yesterday night, I missed my bus by literally a minute. The next one was 31 minutes away. So I stood there wondering whether I should just take a cab or wait. There was nowhere I needed to be, so I decided to wait.

Finally, after 31 minutes, the bus came.

There was only one seat available, next to a woman who then proceeded to talk non-stop for the next 30 minutes, which happened to be exactly till my stop.

I now know a lot about her family.

She was talking to her sister and started with criticising her mother-in-law. Then she was telling her sister that she needs to answer back, and when the mother-in-law starts talking, she should just go into her room and lock the door. Then came advice about what her sister should wear. There was advice about everything. I mean EVERYTHING.

I don’t think people realise that everyone around them can hear these conversations? Or do they just not care?

Because I really don’t need to know about your mother-in-law, your sister’s marriage, what she should wear or how she should deal with her family. And yet, here I am, sitting next to you for 30 minutes, knowing all of it and it’s so tough to tune them out when they are so loud.

To add to the experience, the driver was driving REALLY fast and braking suddenly. At one point, the woman sitting in front of me literally jumped out of her seat and went flying into the person sitting in front of her.

The other person didn’t even flinch, like not even a little.

When you travel by bus everyday, you get used to these things, I’m still getting a hang of it.

Someone crashes into you? Fine.

The bus suddenly brakes and half the bus moves three feet forward? Fine.

Someone is having a loud personal conversation next to you? Fine.

You keep sitting, talking, staring, sleeping, no one cares. All you are concerned about is your stop and when it comes you get off and forget about everyone you were sitting with for the last 30 minutes.

Until the next day, when you get on another bus and there’s a whole new set of people and, most likely, a whole new story.