Yesterday, while I was flying to Dubai from Riyadh, I got the co-passenger we dread the most; even more than the crying infant or the inquisitive child or the snoring aunty.
Yes, I got ‘squeezed’ by a ‘fat flier’.
Now, I am sure, we all have experienced that before. Numerous polls, like this one conducted by Telegraph Travel, have revealed overwhelming support for a “fat tax”, whereby larger travellers are forced to pay more. Most of us always ruefully shout out our stories of how we had the bad deal by having a fat person sit next to us, but very few actually seek comment from the objects of our collective fury: the fat passenger. But, I am sure these fat passengers have a story of their own, right?
I get on the plane, get into my seat, fix my eyes on the baggage handlers below, and avoid interacting with anyone unless they address me first. I grasp my arm and cross my ankles, making my fat body as small as possible. I have carefully observed what makes other passengers snap at fat passengers, roll their eyes, complain to staff. For me, these are inviolable norms.
In today’s Needull, I will turn a bit populist and post something which is already making rounds on the web. This blog from Medium by an anonymous lady blogger is so heartfelt and true, that next time you encounter a ‘fat flier’, you will ‘squeeze’ yourself to make her comfortable.
Needull in a haystack 