Sunday, April 11, 2010

Unstable

I was at a MRT pickup/dropoff stand that everybody uses as a taxi stand.

I was next in line when a young lady asked from behind me if I was waiting for a cab. I turned to her, smiled and said yes. She did what any well mannered regular person would do: she smiled back and proceeded to stand behind me.


In the next minute, I heard a timid voice from behind saying to the young woman that he was there before her. I expected the woman, who just a short while ago, was all sweetness and light (and sane), to tell the man something like, "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't see you." And switch places with the guy.


But
noooo... In a flash, her face contorted into a snarl. Then, with fangs bared and neck veins popping, she screamed into his face, "WHAT FOR YOU TELL ME?! GET IN FRONT OF ME LOR."

I exaggerate not when I say the poor guy froze, not knowing what next to do. Sigh. He looked pitiful! I turned, smiled at the stunned bloke and said to him, "Get behind me, ok?" Oh, he made this big curve of a path to put himself between the woman and me, keeping the angry shrew within his nervous sight . He must have been really scared and wanted to give her as wide a berth as possible.


I looked at the woman again as I got into my cab. She was just standing there, looking at nothing in particular in front of her. Acting like the violent outburst of invective never took place.

And I thought, that's what it means when an animal is described as "of unsound temperament". When the animal is all purr-ry and cuddly one minute, and, in the next, has snapped and bitten half your face off.

It's called unstable when referring to humans.


I felt chill down my spine. I was scared. Really. Truly. Scared.

9 comments:

JM said...

I'm quite sure you scare the shit out of people in your own way too, though possibly in a much more stable and cooler way!

dancingbunny said...

woah. she needs bi-polar disorder treatment
singapore a lot of mental cases.
maybe due to stress

wildgoose said...

It is scary, but I have to agree with dancing bunny that it's due to stress. There are some things that are just hot buttons which easily sends one over the edge.

sinlady said...

jm - boo!

bunny+wildgoose - i HAD to tell cab driver and he said the same thing as you!

zewt said...

there must be something about you which made her control her fangs.

Anonymous said...

haha. you know what they say about 1 out of 10 singaporeans has mental illness - EDPJ

sinlady said...

zewt - she knew i got longer fangs :)

edpj - is that all? i put it as higher.

tuti said...

haha, i had to laugh reading that.
and hi. i came from imp's.
i wonder if i behaved this way too from time to time, not realising, hahah!

sinlady said...

tuti - hi. nice to see you here:)

i think we are all guilty of "losing it" at times. i know i am.