Ever saw the film about a man, portrayed by Tom Hanks, who got stuck in the airport and had to live inside it for a couple of days because of a diplomatic problem of sorts? The title of the movie eludes me but I feel like I'm reliving one of its scenes.
Today, I'm idling away my time at the departure lounge of NAIA 3 and apparently, I'll be idling away more time here until 5 pm this afternoon (I arrived at past 7 am). How exactly this happened is worthy of a lengthy narration so allow me to review what transpired in the 24 hours prior to this unexpected circumstance.
April 3, 2009
7:00 am
Woke up at 6 with the sniffles. Had a decent sleep last night considering that I'd slept only an hour the other night and slept less than 4 hours the previous nights. This week, preparations and other last minute cramming sessions for a marketing event had taken a toll on my body. Feel slightly feverish because of lack of sleep. I shower up and head to Crowne Plaza. Today is the last day of the event. Good riddance.
10:00 am
Manning the company's booth and distributing the fliers. Pretty boring stuff but someone has to do it. Good thing sales is here: a lot of people to talk to and laugh with while wasting away the day. I don't like events now (I never liked them the first time either).
12:00 am
Had lunch with a colleague in Galleria. Restaurant pretty much reminded me of Mandarin Tea Garden in Davao, only with larger servings and more exorbitant prices. Lunch is company expense. Secretly wondering when I'll ever file for company reimbursements.
2:00 pm
Back to booth. Announcing some raffle winners, I think. Feel groggy by the minute (despite the coffee). A couple of hours and this will all be over soon.
4:00 pm
This event is not going to generate a high number of leads. Traffic is not good and the business cards are not dropping. Hopefully, that man who's interested in one of our services will really avail of it. Realized that I had to make a post-event report. That would probably wait until I come back from vacation.
6:00 pm
Great. Egress. But JR is nowhere to be found. Centrex is already dismantling the booth systems. I'm left with our booth furniture. I'm alone; the rest have gone. That's marketing for you: early to arrive and always the last to go. Right now, we don't have transport for the egress so good luck.
8:00 pm
Waiting for a taxi in Galleria with JR. Lining up with a bunch of people who keep looking at us, eyeing at what we have: a bar table and four bar stools. Earlier, a Chinese guy approached us, asking where we bought our stuff. Said it was for an event and, no, we don't know where the company bought them. On hindsight, we could have said we'll tell him, if he gives us a lift.
10:00 pm
In the office. Spent two hours waiting for a taxi. That's how bad it gets here in Manila. Pity that poor American with kids in tow. He couldn't take it anymore and wandered off the line. Welcome to Manila, Joe.
April 4, 2009
12:00 am
I'm home finally. After staying in the office, I met with Ciara and Clinton, ate very late dinner. Still had to pack though but a nap won't hurt. Went upstairs to say to Glenda that I'm going with her to the airport. She's leaving by 4 am. No problem, I thought, I can get myself ready by then. Timed the cellphone alarm at 1:30 and slept.
2:00 am
Am I still sleeping? You bet I am. Obviously, alarm did not work.
4:00 am
Clinton wakes me up. Glenda is outside, waiting. Told her I could not go with her. I still had to pack. I begin packing my luggage, all the while shooting accusatory glances at my sleeping roommates (The guy had to pack but where did my nail cutter go?).
6:00 am
Ok. I'm along the East Service Road. Lots of jeeps , no taxi in sight. i know I'm late and this is not good, not good at all.
8:00 am
Lining up at the counter to rebook my ticket. Trying to practice what the Jesuits call "indifference". Rationalizing that, since I've marked this Saturday to be the day I make up on sleep, it didn't matter if I slept in Davao or in the cozy confines of the airport. But it's not working anyhow. Plus, I didn't know rebooking costs this much (Concentrate Paolo! "It's just money, it's just money, it's...just..money.")
So here I am. My flight is at 5pm, April 4, 2009, bound for Davao. And yep, it's entirely my fault but not entirely my fault either. Though I was the one who masterminded every decision leading to this incident, I can still say there were a lot of factors involved. It doesn't relieve me of the blame anyway but it's a comforting thought nonetheless.
Ok. Let's go back to sleep.
Handwritten April 4, 2009 at 10:13 am at the NAIA 3 Terminal.
Today, I'm idling away my time at the departure lounge of NAIA 3 and apparently, I'll be idling away more time here until 5 pm this afternoon (I arrived at past 7 am). How exactly this happened is worthy of a lengthy narration so allow me to review what transpired in the 24 hours prior to this unexpected circumstance.
April 3, 2009
7:00 am
Woke up at 6 with the sniffles. Had a decent sleep last night considering that I'd slept only an hour the other night and slept less than 4 hours the previous nights. This week, preparations and other last minute cramming sessions for a marketing event had taken a toll on my body. Feel slightly feverish because of lack of sleep. I shower up and head to Crowne Plaza. Today is the last day of the event. Good riddance.
10:00 am
Manning the company's booth and distributing the fliers. Pretty boring stuff but someone has to do it. Good thing sales is here: a lot of people to talk to and laugh with while wasting away the day. I don't like events now (I never liked them the first time either).
12:00 am
Had lunch with a colleague in Galleria. Restaurant pretty much reminded me of Mandarin Tea Garden in Davao, only with larger servings and more exorbitant prices. Lunch is company expense. Secretly wondering when I'll ever file for company reimbursements.
2:00 pm
Back to booth. Announcing some raffle winners, I think. Feel groggy by the minute (despite the coffee). A couple of hours and this will all be over soon.
4:00 pm
This event is not going to generate a high number of leads. Traffic is not good and the business cards are not dropping. Hopefully, that man who's interested in one of our services will really avail of it. Realized that I had to make a post-event report. That would probably wait until I come back from vacation.
6:00 pm
Great. Egress. But JR is nowhere to be found. Centrex is already dismantling the booth systems. I'm left with our booth furniture. I'm alone; the rest have gone. That's marketing for you: early to arrive and always the last to go. Right now, we don't have transport for the egress so good luck.
8:00 pm
Waiting for a taxi in Galleria with JR. Lining up with a bunch of people who keep looking at us, eyeing at what we have: a bar table and four bar stools. Earlier, a Chinese guy approached us, asking where we bought our stuff. Said it was for an event and, no, we don't know where the company bought them. On hindsight, we could have said we'll tell him, if he gives us a lift.
10:00 pm
In the office. Spent two hours waiting for a taxi. That's how bad it gets here in Manila. Pity that poor American with kids in tow. He couldn't take it anymore and wandered off the line. Welcome to Manila, Joe.
April 4, 2009
12:00 am
I'm home finally. After staying in the office, I met with Ciara and Clinton, ate very late dinner. Still had to pack though but a nap won't hurt. Went upstairs to say to Glenda that I'm going with her to the airport. She's leaving by 4 am. No problem, I thought, I can get myself ready by then. Timed the cellphone alarm at 1:30 and slept.
2:00 am
Am I still sleeping? You bet I am. Obviously, alarm did not work.
4:00 am
Clinton wakes me up. Glenda is outside, waiting. Told her I could not go with her. I still had to pack. I begin packing my luggage, all the while shooting accusatory glances at my sleeping roommates (The guy had to pack but where did my nail cutter go?).
6:00 am
Ok. I'm along the East Service Road. Lots of jeeps , no taxi in sight. i know I'm late and this is not good, not good at all.
8:00 am
Lining up at the counter to rebook my ticket. Trying to practice what the Jesuits call "indifference". Rationalizing that, since I've marked this Saturday to be the day I make up on sleep, it didn't matter if I slept in Davao or in the cozy confines of the airport. But it's not working anyhow. Plus, I didn't know rebooking costs this much (Concentrate Paolo! "It's just money, it's just money, it's...just..money.")
So here I am. My flight is at 5pm, April 4, 2009, bound for Davao. And yep, it's entirely my fault but not entirely my fault either. Though I was the one who masterminded every decision leading to this incident, I can still say there were a lot of factors involved. It doesn't relieve me of the blame anyway but it's a comforting thought nonetheless.
Ok. Let's go back to sleep.
Handwritten April 4, 2009 at 10:13 am at the NAIA 3 Terminal.
1 comment:
Winner! Hahaha... :)
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