Waiting in Lines

Every time when I am in a long line (let’s say waiting for a cab in the airport), I feel somewhat agitated. According to my close analysis, the degree of agitation is determined by two Factors: (A) the number of people in front of me, and (B) the number of people behind me.

Factor (A) is determined to be strongly positively correlated with my anxiety level, which means the more people in front of me, the more pissed off I am. It is logical, I think, since the larger number of people indicates longer waiting period.

I also noticed that Factor (B) is highly negatively correlated with my anxiety level, which means the more people behind me, the less agitated, or more delighted, I am. Even though such strongly correlation undeniably exists, I am deeply puzzled. Why would I be happier when there are more people waiting behind me? They have nothing to do with me. They are not going to shorten my wait by any means. Am I the only one who has this illogical feeling?

After consulting with my lovely wife regarding this mysterious phenomenon, once again I was told that I am not special at all. This is actually commonly referred as “幸灾乐祸”, and it has existed in human history as far back as we can remember. Damn...