MTR deserves to be punched over and over again.

(Headline Daily P.18   29 Nov 2012 ) I hope you don't mind if I write again about my favourite punching bag(出氣袋)－－the MTR. It deserves to be punched over and over again for the dreadful (糟透) (terrible, awful, lousy) service it provides. On a recent Saturday, at around 1:30 pm, I again lost my cool 怒不可遏 (got very angry) while travelling to Central from the Kowloon Tong MTR station. The platform was so full of people that I couldn’t even move. Most of them were passengers who had arrived from Lowu on the East Rail. What made the situation worse was that the Central-bound往中環 (going to Central) trains arriving at Kowloon Tong were already full. This made it impossible for us to board上車 (get on). I had to wait for three trains before I could force my way into the overcrowded train. There were so many passengers I couldn't even move while aboard車廂內 (inside the train). It was also stifling 透不過氣來(hard to breathe) aboard the overcrowded train. Another passenger also lost his cool(勃然大怒). He looked at me, shook his head, and said: “And the MTR still wants to raise fares!” He then took a picture of the overcrowded train with his mobile phone. I hope he sends that picture to the overpaid boss of the MTR, Jay Walder. And I hope he makes both Jay Walder and the MTR his punching bags. A punching bag is a big stuffed bag that boxers punch when they train. The verb “train” used this way means to practise for something, such as boxing or swimming. A punching bag also means someone or something that you release your anger on or criticize all the time. For example, Development Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po became a punching bag for the media when it was revealed that he and his wife owned subdivided flats. Jay Walder earns over $10 million a year, including bonuses. But the MTR service is going downhill日走下坡 (getting worse). We should take away his car and driver. He should be forced to use the MTR, especially during rush hour, so he can suffer like the rest of us. * * * 我希望大家別介懷我又提及港鐵了──它可是我最愛的出氣袋（punching bag）呢。它那糟透（dreadful）的服務，實在值得一次又一次地被抨擊。最近某個星期六，大約下午一時半，當我在九龍塘港鐵站準備乘車去中環時，又再一次怒不可遏（lost my cool）。整個月台人滿為患，教我動彈不得。大部份人都是乘東鐵線從羅湖過來的。更差勁的是，那些往中環（Central-bound）的列車抵達九龍塘時，早已擠得水洩不通。 這令我們根本無法上車（board）。我等了三班車，方能勉強擠進那擁擠的車廂。即使在車上（aboard），我仍然被擠得無法動彈，在這個擠逼的車廂內（aboard）更是透不過氣來（stifling）。另一個乘客也勃然大怒（lost his cool），他看我，搖搖頭說道：「港鐵還要求加價！」然後他用手機拍下了這個過度擁擠的情景。 我倒希望他能夠將那張相片，傳給港鐵那支薪過高的老闆韋達誠。我也希望他能拿韋達誠和港鐵做他的出氣袋（punching bag），Punching bag就是那些拳手用來訓練（train）的沙包。Train在這裏當動詞用，就是為拳擊或游泳這類活動作練習。Punching bag同樣解作發洩怒氣或常常批評的人或事。例如，發展局局長陳茂波自從被揭發與太太合營房後，就被傳媒拿來當沙包（punching bag）。韋達誠的年薪包括花紅在內，高達一千萬，但港鐵的服務卻日走下坡（downhill）。我們該拿走他的座駕和司機，迫他乘港鐵，特別在繁忙時間，好讓他能跟我們一樣苦不堪言。 Michael Chugani褚簡寧