Five-Hundred Word Challenge 128: Bus Etiquette

Things that annoy me when I catch a bus:

The first is that when the bus has a lot of people on it, sometimes a good number of them are standing near the front, against the small baggage areas instead of moving to the back.

Why do this? People getting on the bus now have to try and squeeze past you because you’re too much of a selfish asshole to move to the back of the bus because you want to get off before everyone else and supposedly your desire to get off the bus a few seconds before everyone else is more important than making sure that everyone can get on the bus as quickly as possible so the bus doesn’t get too delayed.

The next is that when you get on a bus and go to sit next to someone but only have about twenty percent to thirty percent of the seat to use because someone has decided to spread their legs as widely as they think they can get away with.

When this happens, what I like to do is sit next to them as closely as possible and make them uncomfortable by being right next to them. I don’t care if that’s not a nice thing to do.

They might shift slightly and then slightly close their legs but beyond that, will appear fairly uncomfortable.

The best part about this is that sometimes they may decide to do something by leaning away whilst keeping their legs as spread as possible, as though it makes a significant difference to being able to allow someone to sit on the other side of the seat comfortably.

Sometimes it seems to never cross their minds that they should just close their legs and allow someone else to be on the seat comfortably as possible because apparently they must have some excessive crotch-sweat problem and need to ensure that, on the off-chance that a gentle breeze finds its way on the bus, they can capture as much of it as possible to help reduce the sweating that they would be experiencing.

I don’t like how people can be so selfish that they could do either of these.
I know it is something minor  and there are far bigger things to worry about every day, but even so, it is not hard to have a slight bit of etiquette and not be an asshole when it comes to these things.

It’s not hard to move to the back of the bus to make sure that everyone can get on quickly and it’s also not hard to move over on a seat to make sure that someone else can sit on it without being significantly uncomfortable.

It’s really not that hard and I have no idea as to how these things don’t seem to cross someone’s mind.

Then again, some people really are just selfish pricks who don’t care about much beyond their own nose, unless it would look good to do so.

The time it took to write five-hundred words: 11:40:92

Slower than I hoped, but I got my rant across, so I’m happy.

Written at my (new) desk at home.

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Hibiscus rosa-sinensis

Here’s a shot of a flower I took last weekend whilst walking from Spit Bridge to Manly.

I like how well the “Details” came through in the photo, although it was not always that way.

I like how the droplets sit on the petals of the flower, as well as the drooping petals contrasting with the stigma.

I think I remember the flower being a little bit brighter. However, I was playing around with the photo and ended up with the first two results, then I ended up with the last one (which I consider to be the main image here) by (if I remember correctly) reducing the contrast and saturation.

This is my submission into The Daily Post‘s photo challenge for this week.

I hope you enjoy.

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Uloola Falls

On Tuesday, I walked from Waterfall to Loftus via the Royal National Park.

I’ll write about the walk a bit later, but for now, here’s a shot I took of Uloola Falls.

It’s my first long exposure I’ve taken of a waterfall.

I like the smoothness of the water, as well as how there’s a number of small streams.

I like how it feels relaxed and still.

Whilst I like both versions of the photo here, I prefer the monochrome one as I think it has better tone and detail.

This is my sixty-third entry into Leanne Cole‘s Monochrome Madness.
I recommend checking out what others have shared.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

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One Thousand Word Challenge 7: Looking for Something Interesting to Write Today.

So it’s been a few weeks since I’ve tried to reach one-thousand words, so I’ve now decided that it is time to strike whilst the iron is ready to do the ironing, yet somehow at a cold temperature that can only be found to be so unbearably cold that, once the iron touches any surface, it will shatter in a most spectacular manner.

Yes, that’s right; Once more, I have nothing to write about, so I’m going to try and write about whatever I can in an attempt to make something so describable that descriptions will defy the usual comprehension of the mind that we posses through the ocular requirements that only… something descriptor something something descriptor verbly.

Perhaps I should begin a search for an unending source of inspiration, but the problem is that I know where it is and I don’t want to rely on it as nobody wants to know about how my belly button lint has all the answers and genius required to write at a caliber as good as mine.

that is to say, I don’t know where I should be reaching and I’m a so-so write, but that’s beside the point right now.

Anyway, I’m sitting here, pounding away on the keyboard whilst trying to reach the time constraint that I’ve set myself in an attempt to meet arbitrary challenge settings in the hopes that this will be entertaining enough, and yet I can’t help but wonder as to why I am doing this right now as there are more pressing issues at hand, and yet I still persist, just like the little worker robot that I should probably be, although that would suggest that I’m shinier (and probably cooler) than I actually am, as robots are pretty awesome (sometimes) because they do the stuff that they do and make the robot noises and can be fairly indestructible and fun when they are made and programmed a certain way, but, sadly, this is not always the case with them as sometimes they’re made weak and inefficiently, or sometimes they’re made for purely simple and repetitive processes that that lead to reductions in processing times for certain tasks that I will not go into here as it would produce a very long list and the only long lists that I want to be thinking about right now are the ones that feature my shopping on them as they usually have the total cost of what will come out of my bank account listed on them, thus allowing myself to slightly readjust my weekly budget that I need to keep an eye on as I’m aiming to be really tight with my money at the moment so I can save enough to go on a trip next year and therefore allow myself to experience more of the world outside of Australia (and, by extension [somehow], New South Wales, Victoria, Australian Capital Territory, and Adelaide), thus increasing the amount of things that I get to see and get some great photos and stories that I can then bring back and tell in what would hopefully be a linearly non-linear fashion that will produce nothing more than a complete lack of confusion (or, hopefully some confusion if that is what is destined to become of what I am writing), but I need to make sure I save enough to be able to do so, which means living on a fairly tight budget between now and then, so I need to make sure I’m only purchasing things I need and splurging rarely, thus allowing my pile of coins to turn into two or more piles, thus increasing my finances and allowing the trip to happen when it happens, thus leading to me being satisfied to some extent, although I should still be satisfied regardless of what happens, but not necessarily with not taking a trip, but other things that happen in my life that lead to some sort of growth or development that I can then use to better myself, such as growing wings and somehow being able to use them to fly around and experience the world in ways that I wasn’t aware were possible, although that probably would not be a good thing for me in the end as I imagine I’d have to go in hiding as my popularity would skyrocket far more than I’d ever want it to as I’d potentially be the first person to grow wings and I would just want to be left alone to my own devices, so hopefully I do not grow wings and have other things develop, like my sense of direction or my ability to stare intensely at a wall for no reason other than the wall having it coming, thus showing that I am able to do such with great aplomb and gusto as you wouldn’t do it without those in great quantities because if you did, you wouldn’t be able to enjoy your orange juice with charisma after and that would be the greatest disappointment of all, after a cold, limp, clammy handshake, which happens to be the worst thing one can experience at all times as a handshake should be firm and confident, potentially whilst looking at someone in the eyes, as it shows that you are a confident, strong person (perhaps even friendly [so long as you’re not headbutting them at the same time {unless you’re Wesley Willis, the only person who would be allowed to do that as he’s awesome}]) instead of a person who does not care about the power of a handshake or delights in giving sub-par ones (in which case, get out), thus leading to the development of something so amazing and so wonderful that it cannot be described in any parenthesis alone and requires the use of puppets performing an amazing show to truly get the meaning of the communion of the borscht to truly get across.

So, we will see if I come up with anything interesting today.

The time it took to write one thousand words: 18:18:78

I’m glad about the speed, but not so glad about the rambling.

Oh well.

Written at work.

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Winter Branches

Here’s a shot I was able to take only because I decided to “Look Up” whilst I was in the Royal Botanic Garden last week.

I like the pattern and shape of the branches.

It looks similar to the veins in a leaf.

I also like that, despite having little leaf cover, the branches still look rather lively.

This is my submission into The Daily Post‘s photo challenge for this week.

I hope you enjoy.

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A View of Sydney Harbour Bridge

Here’s a photo I took around the same time I took the shot of Circular Quay whilst at the Pylon Lookout™.

I like this as it’s not a common angle at which photos of the Sydney Harbour Bridge are taken.

I like how well the frame of the arch shows, as well as how, despite being taken from one side, you can still see its curve.

I like how the area beyond the bridge looks smaller than it is.

I also like how quiet and calm everything seems in the shot, despite there being traffic on the bridge.

This is my sixty-second submission into Leanne Cole‘s Monochrome Madness.
This was a themed MM, with the theme being “High”.

I think that this shot suits the theme well it was taken from a high point and also shows how high the bridge is.

The second image is closer to how the original looked, whilst the last was something I did by accident but decided to include as I like that it looks a bit weird.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

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Stump

Here’s a stump I saw last week when I was going to do the last bit of the bushwalk from Mount Kuring-gai to Berowra.

I like how, despite looking like it’s starting to decay, it still seems rather strong in a way that suggests that it’s not weakening.

I also like how it’s shaped and the different texture on it.

I hope you enjoy.

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Some Poem About Relaxing and Watching Clouds

Here’s something I came up with a few minutes ago.
It feels a bit forced, but the imagery is nice.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

——

Clouds drift on by against a sky hung in the afternoon
Laying back in the field of freshly cut grass and watching as they slowly move away
For what feels like a while, obligations and issues are far from being within reach
Feeling the earth under hand
Seeing the trees sway and birds flying above
Hearing the sounds of movement and joy and wonder
On a slow afternoon

After a while it will be time to get up
And return to things that must be taken care of
Yet there will always be opportunity for returning
And laying face up and watching patterns cross through a line of sight
And feel some kind of relaxed
Whilst letting the day pass on by
As obligations and issues are far from being within reach

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Voting is Over and I’m Surprised

So the time of voting ended on Sunday and now everyone is waiting for the vote counting to finish so we can find out who we’re going to be collectively pissed-off at for the next however many years that the new term will be.

That’s the joy of being a voter; it doesn’t matter as to who is in power. Everyone seems to hate them from the get-go.

Half-jokes aside, I’m surprised that Pauline Hanson was able to win a seat.

I also feel a little bit bad as I jokingly told a few people that I was going to vote for One Nation as I believed that we should be united as one multicultural nation, allowing cultural integration and accepting others, then would feign ignorance regarding One Nation and ask something along the lines of “aren’t they about cultural integration?”.

I would never vote for One Nation and, as said just before, I am surprised that Pauline Hanson was able to win a seat.

We live in a country that is meant to be culturally accepting, but I guess in some parts that’s still not the case.

I know that, currently, racism looks to be worse in other countries than it is here, but I can’t help but find myself feeling disgusted by the attitude that some people seem to carry towards other people due to their beliefs.

We must remember that foreigners threaten the “Australian” way of life with their beliefs.

Because supposedly the “Australian” way of life seems to be about ignoring what was done to the Aboriginals and telling anyone who is darker than the snow to fuck off because it’s better to live in a state of backwards head-up-ass ignorance that it is to learn about another culture and help strengthen a nation.

Supposedly Australia was “built” with the ideas of a fair go and mate-ship in mind, but there seems to be people who believe that that extends only as far as people who are of predominantly Anglo-Saxon descent and anyone else could be seen as an enemy.

People should not be judged on their colour, belief, or orientation. What should matter is who they are, but there’s still people in the world who think that that’s not the case.

I don’t know if Pauline Hanson is preying on people’s fears or not, but it’s still worrisome that she could be elected because, ultimately, whilst she is right in saying that she is entitled to her opinion, she seems more interested in remaining as ignorant as possible to other cultures instead of learning about them and trying to understand different points of view.

Not everyone is an extremist and not everyone is here to get people.

Yes, people who come here have to respect the Australian “culture”, but Australia has to respect the cultures that come here as well. It’s a two-way thing.

But there seem to be people out there who don’t understand that.

Oh well. Hopefully people will gradually stop being ignorant.

Edit: For some reason I did not put the time on here, so I’ve removed it from the challenge list.

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Rusted Boat Hull

On Thursday last week I went bush walking in the Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park for the first time in a while.

I decided to walk to Berowra as I had not gone along the route there before.

It ran along Cowan Creek and was fairly nice.

I saw this boat hull near the end of the track running along the creek before heading toward Berowra station.

I’ve read that the boat hull marks the location where a person by the name of Edward Windybank and his family lived and worked.
I’ve also read that he was a ship builder.

I like how, despite something considered unnatural in bush land (or anything that hasn’t been urbanised) can be seen as a display of two “Opposites“, it can also look fitting in some way.

I don’t think the boat hull fits well, but I like how weathered and old it is.

I didn’t do much processing on these images.
There was no sharpening or noise reduction applied.

I mostly adjusted light levels and saturation to get them as close to how I saw them as I could.

This is my submission for The Daily Post‘s photo challenge for this week.

I hope you enjoy.

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