My "Inception" ;-)

I woke up even before the alarm went off (this is a surprise even to me since I usually snooze the alarm and wake up only when it goes off the second time). I got ready and stepped out of my house to catch the bus to my workplace. Surprise! The streets were spic and span, there were full grown trees on either side of the road, host of sparrows (group of sparrows is called host; confirmed at Wiki Answers) were flying from tree to tree, the sunlight was just right, the climate was pleasant and there was peace all around (listening to the fluttering and chirping of birds is peaceful for me).

I just rubbed my eyes but, did not pinch myself. This was too good to be true and would be too bad to spoil even if were to be my dream.

People were jogging and walking on the streets (it is OK; 7.30AM is not so late to exercise), greeting one another. Everyone knew everyone and they all had the time to talk to each other. I continued my short walk to the bus stop feeling good about the environment, greeting everyone on the way. I didn't expect any more surprises for the day. (This would eventually turn out to be false as you read further.)

More surprises!!

The main road (we categorize our roads as cross roads, main roads, state highways, and national highways), now a 4-lane express highway, with service roads on either side, accompanied by the now familiar trees, was a treat to watch. The surface was smooth and the traffic was minimal. The public transportation seemed to have multiplied 10-fold. There were hardly any “personal” vehicles. There were designated lanes for bicycles and the footpaths were conducive for the pedestrians. The bus shelter was air-conditioned, had information kiosks and included a small library comprising of newspapers and magazines. There was an electronic information board which displayed the arrival time of all the buses to various destinations. A swanky new bus arrived at 7.37AM on the dot and I wasn’t surprised that it was the bus to my workplace. I settled down on a plush seat and turned on the in-bus entertainment (swalpa jaasti aythu/too much exaggeration). I had an endless choice of songs, movies and news channels to choose from. I selected black and white melodies and closed my eyes with the intent of taking a nap.

The good old melodious song suddenly changed into the alarm sound of my mobile. I cursed the sound (I usually follow this “ritual” whenever I wake up early morning (early morning to me need not be early to others)), stopped the alarm and woke up. Final surprise!!! I had not pressed the snooze button of the alarm.