i've been taking cabs alot these days. my sister's virus has spread to me. i dont take it like from sgh to home but from mrt stations. plus, the fact the fare is less than $5 and i get home so much faster doesnt help me curb off the evil cab virus.


but sometimes, i get into not-nice cabs. the sulky uncles, the loud blaring of old chinese songs and the jerky rides i can tolerate but the most recent cab incident i really cannot take it. i was sitting on the edge of the seat, my eyes on the door handle, my fingers curled into my knees and my nose taking in only the minimal oxygen needed to keep me conscious.
when i got in, the uncle gave me a funny look then once i shut the door, the smell hits. working in a hospital for some time, i know the smell. some of my patients spot this smell sometimes. mostly old, diabetic, weak uncles. it was the smell of dribblers. no, i dont mean the ball-dribblers. i mean the urine-dribblers. like when u pee and you just cant stop, like a leaky pipe. and some of the urine dribbles on your pants. yup. that smell. and being in an enclosed, air-con space does not ease the smell.


at first i thot, the passenger before me was the one so i scooted to the edge and peeked at the back. the seat was dry and i realized that the smell was stronger in front. at this time, the uncle was shooting me glances. i think he knows i was smelling something funny. he shifts in his seat and i slowly rubbed my nose in an attempt to wave off the smell.
then i realized that he has taken the longer route to my home. oh, gawd. i have to sniff the putrid urine air longer. by this time, i have taken to placing a fist at my nose like i was thinking far away and not realizing that i was doing that.
to make it worse, he started coughing. those deep, chesty cough that screamed TB or some other infectious disease! i stopped breathing for a while. serious.
when he finally made a turn into my carpark, i was getting dizzy from the lack of oxygen, my knees were getting cramped from holding my weight from the seat. i gave him $5, quickly murmuring that he could keep the 30cents, threw open the door, supress my urge to kick the door shut, closed the door like any civilised human being and speed-walked to my lift where i took huge puffs of oxygen and thank god i survived!


sometimes, it's just not your day, you know what i mean.