Distraction. Not good company on a stuffy platform of the London underground system on a grey Friday morning, Lynn learned the hard way.

Lost deep inside her head, she slipped, trying to get onto the train that was supposed to take her to the job centre. Her leg disappeared between platform and train, and she hit the ground hard, not only hurting her pride but also large parts of her lower body, just as Loudspeaker Man helpfully suggested to "mind the gap", as he dutifully reiterated a thousand times each day.

A booted foot crushed Lynn's hand and a loafer hit her in the back, while Lynn promised herself never to laugh at or be annoyed by "Mind the gap"-Man ever again. She had sorely underestimated his helpfulness to date.

She struggled to extract her body from its unfortunate position, when she was suddenly torn out of the hole she had unexpectedly found herself in, before the departing train had a chance to make off with her leg.

"That was close. Jesus, did you not see the gap?" Her knight in shining suit-and-tie seemed more angry than concerned.

"Thank you for saving me!" Lynn answered.

The man gave her a quick once-over, decided she was not about to kick the bucket and hurried on, no doubt towards a nice, well-paid job, judging by his expensive suit, mumbling, "Bloody stupid woman! How can you not see the gap?"

Lynn hobbled towards a bloke carrying a briefcase, her trousers and skin torn, hands bloody, laughing hysterically but not caring one bit about it.

"No, I didn't see the gap!" she shouted at the man, who took a step back in alarm when the crazy lady did not stop her approach. "Story of my bloody life! My husband left me. Said there was this distance between us, this gap that we couldn't bridge anymore. Didn't see that gap, either, did I?"

Briefcase guy nodded in embarrassed sympathy, then grabbed his phone and pretended to be checking something very important.

Lynn's laughter ratcheted up a notch. She zeroed in on a woman in a blazer. "Apparently, there was also a gap in my boss's wallet, and he had to let me go. Didn't see that gap, either, did I? Now I have a gap in my wallet, and my financial adviser advised me that there was a growing gap in my pension savings which I can only stop from expanding if I can find a gap in the job market. But I can't see one there, either, can I?"

Blazer woman strolled in the other direction, pretending that she didn't know Lynn was talking to her, the only give-away of discomfort her sly head turns designed to make sure that crazy lady wasn't following.

Hysteria bubbling over, Lynn race-hobbled after the poor lady, but suddenly heard her own name. The voice was familiar, soothing. Lynn turned towards the voice and stopped. About two metres away from her, she saw her best friend, arms outstretched.

"Someone recognised you, Lynnie, and called me." Her friend sounded scared.

Lynn's hysteria bubble burst and she started to sob. "I'm gap-blind, Monica!"

"No, you're not! You never fail to laugh at my diastema." Monica grinned and pulled Lynn in for a hug.