English work

Lingering at the station. Enduring the lengthy wait at the platform. The train appears from the murky tunnel, dawning on all of the passengers. You are thrusted into the carriage, uncomfortable as they are. Yet, there are none. You stay stood. Surrounded by, what appears to be, hundreds of grunting, moaning, burly old men. So quiet. So serious. No one dares to deliver a single murmur or mumble. Not even you pluck up the courage to open your eternally sealed lips, they stay sealed fir the entire journey. The sombre faces of the workmen glare at the grotty, unsanitary grey floor. Not a single gleeful smile in eyeshot.

How can anybody possibly enjoy the unsightly, vexatious, characterless underground? The throbbing carriage is incredibly awkward and cramped. Every turn you make, another random body part of an utter stranger seems to be flailing right in front of your frowning face. The second ou step foot onto this warzone, eyebrows drop, posture slackens, smiles turn to dust. Sheer melancholy encompasses your body. The underground is like all of humanity gathered - heaving and roaring in a minuscule vicinity - yet, still as one, the myriad moves and engulfs all of the scrawny vulnerable juveniles in one clean swoop.

Imagine it during rush hours! One time, I recall a budding young infant losing sight of it's mother. Everybod observes the child wailing, deprived of its parent, but nobody aids or consoles the boy. They seem  to just continue and snigger at the hapless junior as he is distressed with no-one to support him. No good samaritan.

THe insides are far from opulent. The rusty metal bars, the decreasing quality of services and fraying seats. None of these are good news for the underground and are only adding to the outcome of a purely depressive journey. These very much so, dampen the spirits of the usually elated customers which leads me on to my next significant point.

So, why would anybody want to travel on something so dull and lifeless? Using the tube is like being at a funeral, the misery is preposterous! People in public should be able to let their hair down without worrying about all of the solem journeyers staring and judging them as they entertain themselves with merry faces.

I know, that from many past experiences of roaming the glorious city of London onn this form of public transport, that this is a completely new level of seriousness. Sometimes, I have observed young adolescents on these trains asking one of the elders a general question that any average tourist would see fit to ask and receiving a blank facial expression in return. Obviously, they would not expect this and would want an answer instead of the Londoner seemingly staring into the foreigners soul. This can end up leading to a very humiliating and uneasy predicament. This is not how the public are expected to behave.

The tranquil platform, you casually strut trought the open doors. Now, the room is instead teeming with content kin. The carriage alive with chatter. The atmosphere brimming with smiling faces and bodies bursting with joy. You look around and silently chortle to yourself at how the underground used to be. Now a place full of perfect euphoria. The journey is no longer a chore.