Freezing from London to Stafford (the journey) Chivalry is dead!
After arriving in London safe and sound, the change of coach in Paris and susequent kilometres passing smoothly, we waited for our national express to Stafford. This obviously added another few hours on to the journey, but my father can't drive anymore and I rarely ask favours, so wait we did.
Everything on time, a surprisingly not so nice coach (the first time I have ever seen such a bare and uncomfortable one) but looking forward to the end of the journey and sleeping flat out!
During the journey, after picking up some passengers, the driver (a hearty, strict character) decided it was too warm and opened the sun roof, if that's what you call them, a little. He then proceeded to explain over a very unclear microphone in a very deep voice that should anybody be too cold they could shut it themselves... I understood this, nobody else seemed to...
At a certain point, after freezing for well over half an hour and watching grown men reach up for their woollies and snuggle down to their wives, I decided to risk the driver's wrath and wobbled down to the front.
I had had my daughter's head in my lap until then and had covered us both (trembling) with her jacket and mine, my son was shivering in his sweathshirt. But now she was awake so I could go and do something about it, being as nobody else seemed to want to.
I asked the driver what could be done and he replied "that's what I said love, you can close it!". Naturally (but no more) I half expected some offer of help, as we were hurtling down the motorway and the roof wasn't so low.
Now, I'm not particularly small, 5ft 7", but... After I had pulled the wrong part and ended up with a small glass cover in my hand and the emergency hammer dangling... still they all watched! I managed, of course, to pull the right part and close the offending "window" but I couldn't help feeling how ignorant and selfish the men on the bus were. One, who was travelling alone, even laughed and said "Have you broken it love?" Aaaaaaaargh!!!!!!!!
It was actually broken already, silly and useless male.
- No, sorry, Solita but chivalry is definitly not dead, at least from where I come from. My husband for one would've assisted you, and if he wasn't available, I certainly would've assisted. And, If it was a case of you and me, and we still couldn't do the business, believe you me, any men that were available on the bus would soon look sharp in assisting, and that is without any promises of anything!
- It’s almost anti-chivalry these days. I could’ve happily strangled a whole train-carriage load of London Underground passengers (had I an ounce of strength left) when they utterly ignored me when I was heavily pregnant and on the very brink of collapse when the train got stuck for 20 minutes between Highbury and King’s Cross. I must have been absolutely green, and we were crammed in like pilchards in a box with about as much oxygen. Mercifully I managed to stay conscious until the doors opened, and somehow got out. THEN there were all sorts of people offering water-bottles and support, felt like giving them all a fat kick up the backside and asking them where they’d been for the last 20 minutes, but crawled off to a bench instead. Anything that needs doing, just expect to do it entirely on your own, 'The Little Red Hen' is it seems the story of the decade.
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May, 2012 |
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