Public nuisances

Have you ever heard anyone say that they just love to get on a plane or train or bus and chat with whomever they are sitting next to, even if that person is trying to read a book or sleep or something? No? Neither have I. Everyone complains about people who want to talk to them when they don't want to talk. And that is why I wonder how it is that no matter where you go on public transportation you end up sitting with someone who wants to chat. I use my commute to do my school reading. I'm sitting there, head down, highlighter and pen in one hand, papers in another, and someone says, "Looks like someone's going to school." I look up at the person sitting at a diagonal from me and reply, "Yep." Then the head goes back down. "What class are you taking?" I flash the title of the chapter at the person. "Oh, yeah, interest rates, I hated that." The chapter was, in fact, not about interest rates at all, but about investment interest in subsidiary companies. "I don't envy you." I looked up from my chapter once again, marking the paragraph with my thumb so as to get back to it easily, and said, "Neither do I. And unfortunately, the only time I have to study is on the train." Head went back down. Do you think that worked? No. Too subtle, apparently. "When do you graduate?" "October." After about another three minutes, they gave up. Finally. And you know what sucks? I don't remember a damn thing I read this morning.