Monday, March 8, 2010

Anger Management – pros and cons

I am sure that the people who know and work with me will be surprised to know that I used to have an anger management problem.

The following incident will clarify any questions as to this matter.

When there is horse racing on a Wednesday evening or Saturday at the Shatin Jockey Club some of the Lo Wu trains are diverted from Fotan to the Race Course Station. Under normal circumstances announcements are made at the earlier stations where I might board the train so that I know to wait for another train. Occasionally the staff forget to make the announcement and many is the time I have watched in dismay as Fotan flashes past and I arrive, reluctantly, at the Race Course. Here I have two options, get off the train, cross the platform, get back on the train, return to Shatin and wait for the next train which is going to Fotan. The second option is to stay on the train and go to the Chinese University Station and do the same thing.

A few weeks ago I got on the train at Kowloon Tong and forgot to double check as to whether the train was going to Fotan. This was my fault. However, I was annoyed; quite rightly so on this occasion because there were no announcements, and I ended up at the Race Course. I got off the train and made a point of telling the platform supervisor that there had been no announcements on the train. Much to my surprise this gentleman could not have cared less and my respect for the management of the MTRC fell a few notches. I wasn't going to get any sense out of this fellow so I just waited for the next train and returned to Shatin.

On arrival at Shatin I went up to the concourse which I crossed and descended to the correct platform for the Fotan train. It arrived shortly and I boarded and moments later arrived back at the Race Course Station. Once again there had been no announcements.

Three months ago I would have had a long conversation with the Station Master in which I would have seriously questioned his pedigree. However, on this occasion I meekly crossed the platform, boarded the train and returned to Shatin where I left the station and walked back to Fotan, a distance of just over a mile. It seemed to be the less complicated and safer option and it made the beer taste better.

Now what were you saying about my anger management?

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