Gone in 60 seconds

Its a very warm hello to all the enthusiastic and non enthusiastic readers of my blog. I am pretty sure that it will be difficult to find people belonging to the former category though :)

Now the first question to be answered is what brings me back to the world of blogs after such a long lay off. The answer to this is a saying that I use very often “Sitting idle can be a great facilitator”. Stranded in Newark airport and a waiting time of 9 hours- and what do I do? Promptly pull out my laptop and start typing. And thus this blog :D

Well I will start with the morning travel that almost never was. I had a flight to catch from Austin airport at 6:30 am. I book a cab for 5 am and it turns up 20 minutes late. And still the cab driver asks for gratuity!! Funny place Austin is I must say. Reach airport at 5:50 by my watch only to find a mile long line for check-in. I check in only to find that I have not given my boarding pass inside the envelope given to me by the person in the check in counter. I get back he gives me two boarding passes and both for the connecting flight from Newark!! Finally with my third trip to the check in counter I am given all the boarding passes. Bad day I tell to myself. By now the time is 6:05 and then there is another huge line for security check. Will I make it in time for the 6:30 flight? Suspense suspense suspense.Huff puff and PP reaches the security check counter by 6:20.

Nothing else can go wrong now I tell myself. Suddenly I find the guy at security check taking a very keen interest in my passport. Lifts his face up and non nonchalantly tells me that I have been handed the wrong boarding pass! The name mentioned in the Boarding pass belongs to some Thai lady!! WTF I tell myself – 6:23am. Security guy is nice enough to tell me that I can give the long line a miss and can come from the side path when I get my right boarding pass. Run run run and I get to the check in counter. The guy there, by now completely tired of seeing my face time and again tells me to go to the First class counter and get the new boarding pass – 6:27 am. Luckily the guy at the first class counter gets me the correct boarding pass in a flash and I head to the security counter once again. Surprise surprise! The guy who told me that I could take the side path is not to be found and there is some lady in his place. Pointing her finger at me and speaking with the mannerisms of a school teacher she lets me know that I have to come through the long line once again!! - 6:29 am. Now I cant catch the flight for sure. Suddenly the original security guy turns up and calls me and lets me in!! 6:32 already and my cabin baggage is going through the scanner. Quick quick please I plead to God. “This bag has a laptop” the guy scanning the bags lets out. So? Am I not allowed to take my laptop. “No sir. You need to remove your laptop and it needs to be checked!” And what follows is a 2 minute “long” exercise during which the guy cleans my laptop and gives it to me!! Nice gesture I must say but certainly at the wrong time! F**k 6:37 already. I am dead. I run for the boarding gate – bag on my shoulder, laptop in one hand and my shoes in the other! 6:39 and the door is about to close. I rush in. Certainly the last person to enter the flight and how!! The pretty flight attendant grins on seeing my set up. I reply with a freakish smile, put on my shoes and take my seat. As I take my seat, I thank God for making it in time. Last night I had increased the minute needle by 10 minutes so that I could wake up early. It didn't help me wake up early but surely played its part in me making it to the flight!