Recently I was at the passport office well you know, for getting my passport issued and this really humourous/crazy thing happened.
My father and I had been waiting for our turn while sitting on really lifeless steel chairs. That is when a really quirky character caught my eye- she was a young 20 year old girl, who had her hair tied up in a messy bun and her eyes gleamed behind a pair of spectacles. Her outfit told me that she was fashion consious. But the oddity that attracted my attention to her was her immense restlessness. It seemed as if she was extremely uncomfortable . Her head cocked to one side and her neck jerked quite a few times. I know some people have a nervous tick and thus, they shake their feet/leg continuously, but in this case, she was practically shaking the entire bench along with her. This irritated me on so many levels, that I cannot even begin to describe. I continued observing her till my name was called out by the serious-looking-man behind the counter, waiting impatiently to get over with his problem, that had taken a form similar to me.
I went over to the counter and after all the formalities, the serious-looking-man asked for the photocopies of the stuff that were needed, which included a photocopy of my mother’s Aadhar card. And this is how the conversation went.
SERIOUS-LOOKING-MAN ( feeling annoyed ): I asked for your mother’s Aadhar card. You have given me yours. Where is your mother’s?
ME ( feeling intimidated ):. Um..I think it there in the stack of papers I handed over to you.
SERIOUS-LOOKING-MAN ( feeling more annoyed): No! It’s not here. Will you get the photocopy right now?
ME. ( feeling pretty sure that I submitted it ): It is right there, the last page that I stapled to my application. It is my mother’s.
SERIOUS-LOOKING-MAN ( feeling extremely annoyed ):. This is your Aadhar card’s photocopy. I want your mother’s. Kindly get it.
ME: It’s right there!
SERIOUS-LOOKING-MAN (now infuriated): There take your papers and show it to me.
I took the papers, took out the one to which I had been referring to since ages and shoved it to his face. The man then takes a closer look and says,
“Ah..How am I supposed to know you look so similar to your mother. There is hardly any difference.”
On hearing this, my father burst out laughing and I am completely dazed at the attitude of the man. Firstly, my mother and I am quite distinguishable from each other and secondly, the man did not apologise for his idiocy and for wasting my time.
- When I finally turned around to leave the counter, my eyes searched for the quirky young girl. But alas, the foolish man had not only irritated me to death but also made me lose my one good shot at stalking a “weird” stranger.