Battling comfort and rare seats tease the backsides of the morning peak hour. Commuters patronising one train to the city of Sydney this morning were treated to an overblown argument and a shaking of their comfort zones.
Stemming from one man's insistence of sitting on an aisle seat, another was drawn in by the fascination of a minor debate and the futility of wrapping a man's neck with fingers in public space. Choosing to seat himself with a spare between, the man at the left of the window promptly fell asleep. Later on during the journey, as another man sought the spare seat, he was awoken grumpy with his jaw extended to maximise his scowl.
"From the look of the bespectacled man," noted one witness, "he was clearly upset at the other man climbing over his knees in search of that elusive morning seat."
What followed was an executed string of profanity, wild arm movements and tsk-ing. Seconds later, the now awake bloke stood up looking for the crowd's agreement and sympathy. Their laughter along with pointing out his selfishness returned him to quiet and another carriage.
Written on Friday, 23 July 2004