Life is short. We don't have time to be grumpy. That's what I try to remember when I'm having a bad day or I'm faced with a difficult or tedious situation. When it just gets so terrible that others would throw in the towel, unable to muster up some enthusiasm to go on. At least two people gave up on the tough task I had today. Several muttered grumbles under their breath. It was an ordeal. But that's life in the Post Office queue.
Though we pride ourselves in our talent for queueing, us Brits do like a good grumble when we're in one. But why? It's only ten or fifteen minutes of our time. Sometimes even less! The Post Office line is the worst for keeping up cheery customers. So to combat this attitude, I've come up with ten things, listed in low to high priority, that you could be doing whilst in the seemingly endless torture of the humble Post Office queue:
10. Your taxes.
If it feels like an age stood there, why not get a pen out and sort your finances out? Why wait until you actually have free time? It might even encourage you to send more things to relatives. The time you spend in queues will add up, right?
9. Tidy up a bit.
Other queuees(?) will have picked up leaflets for pension schemes they're never going to use and international postage they're probably not bothered about. Help out the business by putting these back rather than tutting at the mess others are creating. A tidy space is a tidy mind.
8. Listen to an audiobook.
You could get a whole chapter finished. If you hate the gloom of the Post Office queue, surrounded by imminent death and impatient people, teleport to a new world with Stephen Fry's voice for company. I suggest Narnia or Harry Potter.
7. Count the ceiling tiles.
An old exam technique, revert to childhood by counting and recounting the ceiling tiles. Then noticing which ones are different colours and counting them. You'll love it.
6. Count how many people Taylor Swift has written songs about then alphabetise that list. Then re-order it in terms of age, if you have time.
That girl's been around.
5. Conga.
You're already in a line, it only takes a catchy tune and some willing partiers. This one comes with a scowl warning.
4. Learn how to say the alphabet backwards and speed it up.
And stick it on your CV.
3. Chinese whispers.
Another advantage of the automatic line. Who knows what "Buy me two red roses on a Saturday and deliver them in the afternoon" will end up as?
2. Write a list of 10 things you could do in the Post Office queue.
...that's what I did. Jump on the bandwagon and add a theme: ten things you could do in ten minutes; ten things you really shouldn't do; ten people you'd love to be in the queue with...
1. Be patient and remember the little things in life that make you happy.
Seriously, it could be worse. Donate some money to charity on your phone while you're waiting, for extra karma points.
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