Travel by bus

I travel to and from work most days by bus to the extent that some drivers even recognise me when I'm not on the bus and wave! I must have been travelling the route too long I think. You often see the same people. There's the two East European immigrant girls who always get on by the church with the leaning spire to rival the tower at Pisa; there's the lady who works at Morrisons' supermarket; the lady who works at a doctors' surgery and the one who works in Peterborough - a train ride away. But there are also the oddities. There's George - who I used to see regularly and I hadn't seen for months until I saw him again on Friday evening. George has I think some learning difficulties and talks to everyone - mainly about the weather and the bus and how old everyone is - you need to lie unless you want all the occupants of the bus to know the answer! George is harmless and is well known to anyone who travels on that bus.

The one I'm less sure about is the man who travels on the bus on Tuesdays as he works on the market at Spalding. He again talks to everyone - usually incomprehensibly - about the weather and how late/early the bus is, and the new traffic flow measures in Boston. I am not at my best at 7.00am so I find him a trial. Unfortunately he always talks at me, even if I bury my head in a book or talk to someone else. He notices if I'm not on the bus and always wants to know why. This would all be all right if annoying, but one day I was waiting in the bus shelter perching my bum on the piece of metal provided - about half way along. He was sitting at one end. After he'd been talking at me for a couple of minutes he'd slid along the metal and was practically sitting in my lap. I moved and went to stand outside the bus shelter. Plenty of other people about but I didn't like it. I suppose he'll get sick of talking to me in the end as he gets yes/no answers or no answer at all. As it is I try and avoid the bus on a Tuesday.

There's the lady who runs a second hand shop as well - who tends to put her hand on your arm when she's talking to you, and tells you far more about her business than she really should be telling anyone - especially as she doesn't know where we all work. She often can't find her return ticket and has to go through the contents of her bag to locate it. There's a young man who always looks moody - think Heathcliff or Darcy and you're about right. He works in my bank and has lost his driving licence because he got 6 points in his first two years. Now he has to take his test again before he can have his licence back - amazing what you overhear!

But really what prompted this post was the elderly gentleman on the bus on Friday who was trying to get from Lands End to John o'Groats by bus using his bus pass. We were all trying to decide whether there would be a bus to Lincoln from Boston when he got there and the general opinion was he would have to go to Skegness and get a bus to Lincoln from there. It was a different bus company involved so our driver wasn't too sure. Opinions differed amongst the passengers - none of whom was carrying the right timetable. It got everyone talking though. I can't wait until I get my bus pass then I can hop off to all sorts of places free - great fun! I just hope they haven't abolished it before I'm old enough.

Off to read the Sunday papers on line and then to make yet another apple crumble.