Halcyonic Days......

     Ah, the school day. The work day as well. Waking up at six 'o' clock, walking sixteen blocks, taking the bus for thirty minutes......bliss. The noise of the man behind me humming loudly and out-of-tune, the women gossiping in another language at the top of their lungs, the small children running everywhere and yelling about everything and annoying everyone.......
    School. Shouting, jostling, running, eating, sneezing, jumping, singing, yelling, screaming, learning, listening, sitting, standing, crouching, answering, praising, dozing. And then lunchtime strolls along, and everything is peaceful once more. Birds twitter as you search for $2 dumplings, but no avail. You trudge meekly back into the building, all your bravado and impudence punctured.
    Then the rest of the day meanders on, and you suddenly discover that it is time to leave. But no, you must stay for "Test Prep". (Think chains and manacles).
    5:30 arrives after hours of meaningless torture, and you are released from servitude. You proceed to the bus, and wait for another half an hour for it to come. You then ride home.
    You step off the bus, only to be greeted by yelling and shouting and waving from the man on the corner, who then proceeds to scrutinize every cigarette butt, shredded leaf, and discarded napkin on ever curb. Then you walk another ten or so blocks, dodging screaming children, runners, and hunched-over old Italian ladies all the while. You are so hungry you are forced to enter supermarkets and devour all of the samples. You exit the supermarket, and start to swing your umbrella. A woman walks briskly up to you and says "You know, you could hit someone doing that.". She was quite grumpy. You trudge the remaining blocks home, fueled by your annoyance, only to be greeted by an hour of the vexatious, bothersome, irritating little thing they call homework.