Tales of Public Transportation, Part Infinity: What Is Niceness?
Say you were taking public transportation. If you were in the middle of an activity, such as putting on cologne, makeup, or nail polish, and someone in the seat behind you said: "Excuse me, I'm sorry: your [insert activity] is causing me to have an allergic reaction," what would you do? In my case, my immediate response would be: "Oh, I'm so sorry!" And I would promptly stop the activity. Maybe afterward, I would wonder if my activity were really that bad, or if I should have really had to stop. But my FIRST reaction would be: "Oh, I'm so SORRY." Because I would understand that I was not in my own bathroom and that I was sharing this space with other people, and that other people could be affected by what I do. Even when I'm in a shitty mood, I am mindful of this. Not an actual representation of my train. This one is much, much nicer. So this morning, I was sitting behind a man and a woman on the BART train into San Franc