Journey being WaitListed

Today’s the corporate era – everybody on their toes. Gone are the days when our Pops’ used to plan their holiday’s well in advance. But now the work pressure has put us in such a bad situation as in we never know, if we would be going on holiday which we planned some two months back. The result, the person who boasts of so much of plan executions and teach other’s of the benefits of planning in his professional circle can never plan his own life.

 

Until the last days of Diwali, I never knew if I would be able to make to reach my parents on this Diwali. The results I couldn’t book well in advance my journey tickets. With the population rising at the exponential rate in this country, there’s a long list of wait listed candidates in every queue. Same happened to me I was given waiting list status of #206. Though not enthusiastic, I was still hopeful of my ticket to be confirmed by the journey date. The journey date has also even come up, still W/L 146, but its not the end of the hope, there are still the chances of getting it confirmed by the time chart will be prepared. I packed my bag, keep the luggage as small as possible, dressed up, tied my shoe laces, and headed up for the railway station. I reached to the platform well in advance of at least an hour, so I got enough of time, to explore through the prepared reservation chart, and to see where I am going to land. Alas, I am still W/L 11. What left I had to wait train, board it with the wait listed status, and see if I can accommodate myself in some coach. The thought of comfort factor is gone by now. The only thing that came across, as soon as I enter the train, I look for the TTE and settle down to a decent deal.

 

When I entered the coach, I saw every compartment’s bathroom lobby is occupied by a least 2-3 people. So the hopes were just about to collapse. I forgot for the seat, now, my target was to look for some space in the bathroom lobby itself, but in India, you’ll find people every where. I wonder why the hell, the cricketers in the post match presentation ceremony always thanks to the crowd in India, as this the only thing we in development moving forward in the world. Means, the bathroom lobby in every coach was also full house. The only space that is left is that creates when we shut the doors. So I put my sack down there, and sat on the same. The time was around 2200 Hrs, the privileged people with the births were going under the covers, while me just looking for the minutes that have been passed, the hours those have still to spend etc. Nothing was going good. Meanwhile, train halts to station Valsaad, not a popular one, but yes the bad luck was still with me, the passengers boarding the train had their seats in my coach and to the worst part they were about to enter from the door I was sitting by. My only place was also gone, I got up, opened the doors, and welcomed the unwanted guests. The train started once again, and I was waiting on platforms so that I could be the last one to board the train so that I once again can, occupy my seats (the door side).

 

The time had crossed the midnight limits, all the privileged passengers were in their best of the sleeps while the less privileged one like me, were looking them sleeping. By then, I was able to count each of 206 bones of my body, every muscle around them was aching. The more I would be concentrating on the body parts the more pains would be there. So I was looking to do something else, thank god, at least we are in communications era, and thus carry the cells everywhere we go. The good point is that is even if we don’t have the network, we still can have the leisure to play cell-phone games. With so much prologue, I must say that I picked out my outdated nokia 1100, and started the snake application. And believe me it worked I didn’t realize how the time went by, and when I realized it was around 2 in the morning. My body was shattering, eyes were closing by themselves. I got up walked from one coach to other to other and to look if any of them had sufficient space to accommodate me. I got one place in the passers-by, forgot where I would be landing in, I made the sack as the pillow, and lied down there only, and don’t know when I got into my dreamy world.

 

I was 6:00 am, Lonavala station hawkers were shouting for their chickies, and chai. Some passengers were yawning, some were packing their stuffs back. To a little while, I didn’t know what to do, but later I got up picked a nearby seat corner, and started looking the dawn, the sun rising outside the train which I had not seen in the near past. The train shunting and in an hour I reached to my destination station – Pune. I got off the train and walked off the station, leaving behind all the pains and misery I encountered. 

All's well that end's well