Reasons to Hate the Commute

#652 Signs ~ NotoSignsAlongtheGCMRTXLine

Signs! Signs! Signs!

Signs everywhere!

We used to complain that Manila was a city overrun by billboards. Now that we have fewer billboards, we have to deal with more signs.

A LOT MORE SIGNS!

We got signs all over public transport stops, strange symbols, often glowing, like tattoo marks, covering waiting sheds, train stations, bus terminals. We got the occasional symbol appearing on the clothing or person of a Sinauna employee, whether driver, conductor, sales rep, tech support or even construction worker. We got signs in all shapes and colors and sizes and intensity of hue. We got signs that hum, signs that suck out all the sound around them, and signs that emit low sounds, like words being whispered...

And the best part is, we have no clue what any of them mean!!

Right now I want to complain about a specific set of signs. Whoever had the brilliant idea to litter the X line of the MRT with signs needs to get fired. It seems like more and more signs are added each day - each one blurrier in meaning than the next.

I take the X line to and from work every day. The signs are confusing and visually offensive and highly distracting. Most people who take the X line go to the various business districts of the city to WORK. Stands to reason they'd want their stations clean and uncomplicated, right?? If the signage is cluttered it needs to be streamlined, and if it's considered "art," it should be taken elsewhere.

Just a month before, the MRT powers that be added a new sign to their bizarre array. It's a huge, colorful, intricate thing in the underground station, right where the northbound and southbound entrance/exits of the Global City MRT station (X line, as mentioned earlier) connect.

It reminded me of a mandala. Kind of. With the pattern all hypnotic and repetitive like that. And with the colors changing so rapidly I think the pattern changes too... in little ways, but I'm not sure.

Now... most signs you know are warnings. You just FEEL it. You don't have to know what a sign says, to know that it means "don't step over the yellow line if you want to keep your legs" ...or "no littering - first offense: verbal reprimand; second offense: P10,000 fine; third offense: jail time with P50,000 bail and a seminar on commuter etiquette."

This one doesn't feel like a warning. This one gives off another sort of feeling, the kind that... when you lay your eyes on it even by accident, you'll end up being drawn to it. Even if you don't know what the heck it means.

Seriously. There's no way to avoid it and that sucks. It's right in the intersection, which means everyone who goes IN and OUT of the GC MRT station HAS to look at it. You can stick your face behind a tablet or newspaper or your hand or something else and try to avoid it that way... but as soon as you make the mistake of laying eyes on it, you're gone.

For exactly 10 minutes.

There's a group of people standing in front of the sign at any given time, staring up at it wide-eyed and slack-jawed. I've observed that it could be anywhere from 1 up to 50 individuals. Not that I've spent a lot of time observing, mind...

It's just that I've spent quite a bit of time accidentally glancing at it, and subsequently getting hooked.

10 minutes of my life lost. Every. Single. Time. And I'm sure it's 10 whole minutes - yes I've looked at it deliberately and when I did, I remembered to check my watch, okay.

After coming to my senses, I head to the office and work and then go home - wondering where those 10 minutes-at-a-time went, where the giant mandala-like symbol took it.

One of my colleagues says he looks at the sign on purpose. ON PURPOSE. He stands in front of it before leaving the station to get to the office. He claims it helps him become more focused at work. And then he looks at it again before boarding the train home. He swears it restores his energy, so he'll have more to spare for his family when he gets back to them.

I do admit my sales figures have increased since they put the new sign up. And I admit I'm also doing a lot better on the relationship front these days. But that's no doubt a coincidence.

After I post this complaint on your site, I'm starting a virtual petition to remove it and ALL the other signs along the X line. I want those eyesores GONE.