I rushed to the elevator, with the hope that it did not close before I got there. One hand was barely grasping my book-bag as the other frantically alternated between gesturing for the elevator and closing the zipper. Somebody stretched out their hand and I made a maddening dash inside, ” Please press G,” I huffed and puffed to no one in particular. The elevator was half-full and the guy who was right behind me uttered, ” This is G.” “Oops, press L no, 1” The occupants started shifting uneasily, I could already feel the sweat beads on my nose. See, I inherited my dad’s nose which is quite big 🙂 it seats on my face like it was plastered there as an afterthought. When I feel anxious or embarrassed, I can almost always feel the sweat beads as they sprout.
The elevator buttons are labeled quite differently here in America, sometimes we have G (means ground but refers to basement), L (lobby), 1 (first floor) and so forth. Other times it is just G (ground) then 1 for first floor. I am used to, LG (Lower ground/ basement), G (ground), 1 (first floor). I know this might seem like minute details to some readers, but these really do make a difference when one is moving about. I thought ground level is the level we walk on, where the grass grows outside 🙂 and first floor is the first level above the ground. So every time I take an elevator my Voice Onset Time ( if I may use this, Mr. Worth) on the buttons takes awhile as my brain has to interpret the buttons. Nowadays I just avoid asking anybody to press for me any buttons as I do my own mental interpretations once inside. Perhaps next time I will take the stairs.
When you move to a new place, you should adhere to the saying ‘When in Rome do as the Romans do.’ Else, you will go about life constantly explaining yourself. Beware of words such as, hood instead of bonnet, trunk instead of boot, hallway instead of corridor, trashcan instead of dustbin and many more that are frequently used that maybe be different from what one normally uses.