Feeling poor and feeling good at the same time

Headphones? check. Laptop bag? check. $1.75 exact change handy? check.

This was my first day of taking public transportation to work. I plugged in my earphones and slowly walked towards the bus stop. It was a pleasant sunny day; I could sense a small spring in my steps as a result of my mood elevation. Fast forward 12 minutes - I was at the bus stop waiting for bus number 57 to arrive. It was a small bus stop, complete with a bench that was empty, but I decided to stand and wait since I had so much adrenaline pumping.

As I stood there gazing at the cars zoom by in both directions, my enthusiasm seemed to be withering down in a slow and steady pace. It was then that I realized it - I was feeling poor. My brain was playing a slide show of all my prior years of taking public transportation. The sweaty waits at the bus stop, the entrapment of my nostrils near armpits of random people in a crowded bus and finally, hanging on to the bus like a sari upon a clotheslines on a windy day. Didn't I work hard so I could get the luxury of a car? Am I not privileged to my "own private space"?

I was woken up from my thoughts by a low hiss of a bus coming to a stop. I boarded the bus(now a less desiring object than I had previously imagined), found a seat, and settled in. Was this a wrong decision to begin with? But wait, I have a car now, and I was not on the bus because it was my only choice. This was a choice I made on my own terms(consciously and happily);lets investigate why.

I strongly believe that a consumer should be able to limit his/her consumption of a commodity as and when the price of that commodity fluctuates. With gas(or petrol as it is known in most places) prices at an astronomical high, I, as a consumer, should be able to say "Well, I don't need it that much anymore". But as we all know, in the case of gas, it doesn't work that way. I still have to drive the same amount of miles, and the miles per gallon equation is not one that I change without changing the car itself. Though speculation is being suspected for rising prices, the IEA(International Energy Agency) thinks its not so. The oil barons blame India and China for growing demand. While they are at it, they are also blaming India and China for global warming, population explosion and a boat load of other things. Yeah that's right, when corporations cannot find good reasons for ripping off people, blame it on the third world countries for having aspirations and working hard to achieve global status as a developed country(Did you know California's 20 billion gallon gasoline and diesel habit is greater than China’s or India’s?). I guess they need scapegoats to offset their guilt and reap the benefits of humanity's over dependence of
oil. Isn't it ironic that we still have debates on the validity of global warming when the damage it's doing to our planet is crystal clear?

From my research, the only effective way to stick it up to the oil man is to cut demand and there is no better way than to take up using public transportation (Driving less is also an option, but then that would be letting the oil company dictate your lifestyle). The fact that oil prices plunged around $25 when world's largest consumers of oil(USA leads among the pack) reduced their intake, is a glaring proof of the same. So why is not every one taking it up you ask? I think people equate public transportation(which comes packaged with lifestyle inconveniences) with under achievement in life. My feeling of poverty and a sense of luxury entitlement mentioned above may help solving a small piece of the puzzle.

So to my own surprise, I decided to rise above my little selfish needs and do something for the greater good. That brings us to where I left off earlier. The bus trip had given me benefits galore so far - a workout for my heart, hamstrings and gluteals, no speeding or speeding ticket worries, no tying the seat belt contraption around me (I am not into bondage and S&M anyway), all the time to dream, think and people watch. Plus, boarding a bus is number 14 on the 51 ways to fight global warming. "This is way beyond a good feeling" - I thought; "I think I am going to do this more often". I looked outside and realized that my point B was fast approaching.

Right bus stop? check. Laptop bag? check. Feel good factor from doing the right thing? checkmate.