Monday, October 13, 2008

電車の人  (分からない)

The first time it happened, I was on my way to Chu's house.

The Kamata bound subway on the Ikegami line (or "T-bone's line" as I secretly refer to it)was packed with people coming from Gotanda station. I smashed my way to the corner by the door and held the hand grabby thing as I waited until the train pushed off.

After we had gone a few stops. The man beside me brushes past my arm in a downward position and bounces off of people a la pinball and ends up on the floor. At the next stop, people help him up and sit him on a chair outside. He slouches over and a woman alerts the train guard. I exit the station and head over to Chu's house. After ten minutes, I forget anything even happened.

The second time it happened, I was on my way to meet Laura and Maki in Yokohama on the Keihin-Tohoku line when I noticed a man slouched down unusually low in his seat. I went back to studying Japanese grammar, and when I looked up again, I saw him sliding down his chair. The man two seats beside him patted his back and asked "大丈夫?”

応えない。So the man sits back in his seat, and again continues to stare ahead. Meanwhile, the passed out salary dude slowly slinks down onto his knees, and 3 train stops pass.

I don't know why I let those 15 minutes pass just watching everybody else watching him. So at the next stop, I halfway hung out of the train waving my arms to the station guard who blows the whistle at the ends of the train. The train is long, about 10 cars, so I doubt he sees me, yet I continue. I know the doors won't cut me in half if they were to close on me. They close on me, and i slither back because both my stuff and the man are inside the train.

My Japanese vocabulary is still pretty limited to a 4 or 5 year old child, so when I approach a couple and say "荷物を見て下さい", I know that I am not asking "Could you please watch my stuff for a moment?". Instead, I'm saying "look at my stuff". However, by pointing to the man, my stuff, and the door to the next car....their confused looks suddenly turned into an understanding smile, and they nodded.
So I began my journey down to the end of the train.

Apparently, Whistley Mcgee saw me after all, and was on his way to my car when we met in the middle of the train. I said 病気な男があるの and did my characteristicly gaijin finger-point over into the man's direction. The station attendant hurried to the man and began to attempt to wake him up. The man would not wake up. Simultaneously, a man with a briefcase in the same car, who had also been watching this guy for the past 15 minutes, ran to them saying what I can only guess is "I'm a doctor" in Japanese.

The train stops at the next station and they carry the guy out. As passengers board and depart the train, I watch the scene out the train window while the "doctor" unbuckles the guy's pants, takes off his tie, and rolls him to his side. As the train makes its rolling start, I look down at my grammar book.

I wonder how long I'd be on the floor unconscious before somebody does something.


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電車の人(分からない---densha no hito (wakaranai) Train People (I don't undestand)
"大丈夫?-------------daijoubu Are you okay?
応えない--------------kotaenai He didn't answer.
"荷物を見て下さい"-----nimotsu wo mite kudasai Look at my stuff.
病気な男があるの-------byoki na otoko ga aru no There is a sick man.

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