A day in the mind of a travellng executive

Wrote this on a whim. None of the events here are true.

6:10 Am : Flight to Mumbai, delayed. Expected departure 7:30 Am. Curses! Sipping coffee at the waiting area, trying to ward of sleep. Bloodshot eyes. The late dinner wasn't helping.

7:15 Am: Boarded the flight. Jammed between a snoring old man and a cute Exec. Nice perfume! Whoa angry stare!

7:55 Am: The plane finally moves out for take off. Hope it’s a smooth flight. Hate flying. Cute airhostess, nice legs. Firing up the laptop, start customising presentations.

7:56 Am: Cell phone rings loudly. Boss' number flashing. Airhostess sternly requests it be switched off, images of a steaming hot Boss flashes in my mnd, switch the phone off anyway. Grin at the cute fellow passenger, Whoa, angry stare again!

8:13 Am: Breakfast. Croissants made in the previous decade. Smelly eggs. Whoops, air pocket. Egg patterns in the tie. Grin at the Exec. Permanent Stare. It's PMS (Permanent Mad Stare).

9:34 Am: Landing in Mumbai. Fresh tie, same grin, same old stare. Go away witch! Hot sun beating down. Hot already?

9:40 Am: Spotted the driver. On my way, relishing the AC in the Ford Ikon. Looking out of the car. Cute Exec sweating it out on non-AC rickety taxi. Grin again. Enjoying her expected response. Look up skywards! Nice one dude!

10:41 Am: Late for the first meeting. Mistake in the presentation, must remember, its Mr. Sharma and not Ms. Sharma, early morning meeting blues, words and thoughts not flowing. Survival time! Pull it off in the end. Lukewarm response. Big surprise.

12:00 Noon: Second meeting, reached on time, customer late. Big office, bad decor. Play SnakeII on the phone. Could use a coffee!

12:31 Pm: Looking around nervously. Big meeting, no client. Pace the reception. Client arrives. Good meeting. Very interested, though long way for sale to close . Hunger Pangs.

1:45 Pm: Crazy heat. Lousy restaurant. Spicy food. Must eat quickly.

2:34 Pm: 4 minutes late for the most important meeting of the day. Customer waiting. Hope to close sale today.

2:49 Pm: Price negotiations! This customer is a shark! Haggle on bravely. Stale coffee.

3:16 Pm: Sale Closed! Contract signed! Phew, touch and go.

3:45 Pm: On the way to the airport. Running late. Remember vada paos. Stop the taxi near a roadside vendor. Hmm..Stuff made for the soul. Rush back to the taxi, chewing on the vada pao.

4:23 Pm: Reach airport. Ticket waitlisted. Turn on the charm at the counter girl. Wait for a few minutes. Got a ticket. Yay! Just Remembered to return boss' call. One angry boss coming right up!

4:31 Pm: Getting chewed by the boss. Give him the good news of the sale. Get chewed again. Hey, the cute Exec walks past. Same perfume, fresh as ever. How does she still look perfect?

4:50 Pm: Board the flight. Exec sitting in the adjacent row. Great! I'm sitting next to a Mom, her 7 year old and her life sized doll. Trouble!

5:01 Pm: Flight takes of, Mom grabs the kid, kid grabs the doll, and the doll grabs my face. Did the Exec just smile?

5:21 Pm: Refreshments served. Open novel. Look at Exec. She looks back. Grin at her, she grins back looking at the book, then turns her head and closes her eyes. Felt good. Look down on the book. Shit, it’s upside down. Glare at the Exec. Witch!

6:26 Pm: Land back in Bangalore. Big queue for taxi, Exec in the end, bag in tow. Wink at her. Walk over to the parking long. Drive my car, cross the foyer, the Exec still waiting. Thinking hard about stopping. Drive away past her, feeling reckless, send her a flying kiss.

7:10 Pm: Getting ready for the first dinner at the boss’ house, meeting his wife. Awesome! irritating Boss, boring wife. Sigh.

8:01 Pm: At the Boss’ door. Door opens, standing there is the Exec from the flight. Holy Crap! Perfect!