Sick Sad World

"You've gotta love to hate." -- 114th Annual Varsity Show

6:22 PM: I sprint down the escalator to the subway platform and a W train is waiting for me. SCORE.
6:23 PM: I lean on the door to the conductor's compartment and load Doom: Resurrection on my iPod.
6:25 PM: Take THAT, chaingun zombie sergeants!!!
6:27 PM: I notice that the train hasn't moved and the car doors are still open. I lower the volume on my iPod.
6:28 PM: "We are being held momentarily by the train's dispatcher. Please be patient."
6:30 PM: My fellow passengers are starting to lose patience. Everyone starts to fidget.
6:32 PM: The conductor finally speaks. There was an incident at the next stop and service is temporarily delayed.
6:33 PM: The guy standing next to me curses out the MTA.
6:34 PM: The couple seated on my right decides to find somewhere nearby to get dinner. They exit the train and two other passengers take their seats. All of this takes some effort, since the train is now so packed that people can barely move.
6:35 PM: The conductor again informs us that there was an incident at the next stop and service is delayed all along this branch of the BMT. I'm slightly impressed that the conductor knows what the BMT is. More of my fellow passengers bail off. Cursing Man curses even more.
6:38 PM: DOOM level boss is annihilated after a few well-placed headshots. Gosh, my aim rocks.
6:40 PM: The conductor explains the nature of the incident. A woman didn't feel well on the train at the next station, so all trains on the line are being held until the ambulance arrives to examine her. The volume level in my car explodes.
6:41 PM: The woman next to me yells, "These a**holes! What part of 'Do not get on the train if you feel ill' do they not f***ing understand?!"
6:42 PM: Cursing Man curses a lot, bashes the handrails a few times, and calls the sick woman a pretty impressive array of insults.
6:43 PM: More people bail off the train.
6:45 PM: The conductor repeats his announcement about the sick woman at the next stop. Several passengers wonder aloud why the MTA can't "just make the b*tch get off the train" so service can resume.
6:46 PM: Another fellow wonders how long it takes to get a f***ing ambulance to a major transit hub.
6:50 PM: The conductor repeats his announcement. The mumblings, hisses, and sniping resume. The subway car is filled with an almost palpable haze of pure hatred, all directed at the ill woman at the next stop.
6:55 PM: I realize that I have to pee.
6:56 PM: I start to become enraged at the ill woman's audacity. Hell, I've fainted in the subway system several times over the years -- but each time, I had the decency to run off the train and pass out on the platform to avoid causing a train delay!
6:57 PM: It dawns on me that the New York City subway system is the only place on the planet where people will hear about a sick lady and respond with hatred and rage rather than concern and empathy.
6:58 PM: I remember that I'm a healthcare professional who has devoted her life to curing people. Part of me starts to feel guilty for resenting the sick woman.
6:59 PM: The doors close. The train moves.
7:00 PM: Cursing Man sighs an expletive of relief. For the first time all evening, I take a good look at him. He's wearing scrubs and hospital clogs.