Negotiating on the Train

Last night heading home from North Station, the train was packed! I walked all the way to the last car before I found a seat. Some guy who had mistaken the train for Southwest Airlines, was sitting on an aisle seat and had the window available. He was talking on the phone so I interrupted him. He looked at me like I had six heads. I thought "Screw you buddy. You're letting me sit. I have a 45 minute ride ahead of me and I'm not standing! Plus I want to read my book." Instead of saying what I thought, I smiled and asked "Can I sit down please?" He got up hastily and allowed me to take the window seat.

Once I got situated, the conductor comes in and screams "If you are in a three seater and the middle seat is empty, MOVE IN!" People slide in but this one woman refuses to slide in. Explaining that she is claustrophobic and doesn't want to slide in. The conductor comes over and says if she is claustrophobic, she can stand and let two people sit. She didn't like that and starts negotiating with the person who is aligned with her seat and should be the one sitting down. "How about you sit in the middle and then at the next stop we switch. We can take turns?" Everyone looks at HER like she has six heads. Really? You're going to make someone switch off every other stop from middle to aisle. What if this person wants to read or set up their laptop? That's just not conducive at all.

The conductor then became a mediator. He turns to the person standing "Would you mind taking the middle instead of the aisle?" The woman is still trying to negotiate "Where are you getting off? I don't want to get up to let you off if you get off before me." Ok, you lost me lady. Didn't you just say you wanted to switch off every other stop? Now you don't want to let this guy out if he happens to get off before you? Now your just crazy.

The conductor turns to the guy in the aisle "Take the middle seat." He turns to the woman "Tickets and passes please!" Obviously this conductor wasn't going to deal with this ladies crap and rightly so!