getting even

i may be the worst nightmare of cab drivers in the city. i cried and cursed out of frustration of being late for work and i unreasonably demanded some taxi drivers to get me to the office in an impossible 5-minute time. i know, it's a crappy attitude and i try to be nice and charming in my rush hours...or minutes.

and this is one proof that i've actually learned to tame my temper...just a teenee weenee bit...

i got off the jeepney at the corner of UP because, as usual, it would be impossible to get to the office on time in a jeepney. so i hailed a cab and asked manong driver, in a very cool and almost charming tone of my voice, to hurry because i'm late for work. i might have been too nice because he took the road frequently traveled by. in short, we were stuck in the traffic! manong driver successfully raised my blood pressure to 200 over 160 as the meter hiked up. i promised to keep my cool. so instead of asking him, in a, maybe sarcastic tone, why he took that road when he obviously knows that the  traffic is terrible on that area at that time, i just recited the prologue of "the beauty and the beast"...out loud!

                                                   Once upon a time, in a faraway land,

A young Prince lived in a shining castle.

Although he had everything his heart desired,

The Prince was spoiled, selfish, and unkind.

But then, one winter's night,

An old beggar woman came to the castle

And offered him a single Rose

In return for shelter from the bitter cold.

Repulsed by her haggard appearance,

The Prince sneered at the gift,

And turned the old woman away.

But she warned him not to be deceived by appearances, 

For Beauty is found within.

And when he dismissed her again,

The old woman's ugliness melted away

To reveal a beautiful Enchantress.

The Prince tried to apologize, but it was too late, 

For she had seen that there was no love in his heart. 

And as punishment,

She transformed him into a hideous beast,

And placed a powerful spell on the castle,

And all who lived there.

Ashamed of his monstrous form,

The beast concealed himself inside his castle,

With a magic mirror as his only window to the outside world.

The Rose she had offered,

Was truly an enchanted rose,

Which would bloom for many years.

If he could learn to love another,

And earn her love in return

By the time the last petal fell,

Then the spell would be broken.

If not, he would be doomed to remain a beast

For all time.

As the years passed,

He fell into despair, and lost all hope,

For who could ever learn to love...a Beast?

reciting that, made me feel relaxed a little bit. and i stopped myself from laughing when i saw the shocked reaction of the driver. hahaha! good thing, i had my sunglasses on. i enjoyed every minute of the confused-to-scared face of manong driver. and as if, the prologue wasn't enough, i sang " a whole new world " at the top of my lungs. that made him even more mentally disoriented. his eyes showed it all! if the driver wasn't brave enough, he could have stopped the cab and left a lunatic like me there. but he was courageous enough to drive me to the office. i'm thankful. i got even!