Cost of Money
I was invited to deliver a talk at a new office of my organisation (still blowing my own bugle). I took this opportunity to holiday there as well. Along with my wife we visited a hill station close by. I had asked my wife to carry an extra pair of warm clothes for me. Before all the ladies start to howl at me for making my wife carry things for me, I would like to inform them that I carried most of her stuff in my bag and I did not have much space in mine.
On reaching the hill station we were visibly surprised, I should say shocked. We both were sweating after a short walk. The place was not even cooler than my hometown Bangalore (Bengalooru). We did go around and see the sights and the many suicide points that were available. Suicide points become good tourist spots, what an irony. I am not sure how people would like to end their lives from a point where life and nature looks just beautiful and perfect.
We stayed there till most of our cash reserves were nearly depleted. Money depletes like fuel on a vacation (and when not on a vacation too). The more you have the faster it goes. We just saved enough to get back to the city where we had access to the banks and ATMs. We had money in the bank but what we did not have was time. The day we reached back at the city we had to hurry and rush to the airport. It was mid noon and we still had not had time to eat our breakfast too.
My ticket was paid by our lovely organization (I was not sarcastic readers). My wife's ticket was on a low cost airline, which we now call a "Cheap Airline". Again it was economics that made us do this. The flights were 30 minutes apart so I took all the baggage and proceeded while my wife waited for her turn to proceed to the Security check. I thought it was just 30 minutes between us so I did not really bother much that she did not have any money.
I thought while I waited for my flight I could get a coffee. I had a big 500 Rs note. This is a big denomination by Indian standards, the shop personnel refused to change it for me. What luck. Out there my wife just had a 20 Rs may be with her and hoping for a 500 and here I had a 500 hoping that I had a 20.
Soon there was news that her flight had a technical snag and would be delayed by 3 hours. So I had to leave her hungry, waiting at the airport for her flight with no money. Just then it struck me that I would as well pass on the 500 to her, who knows when her flight would leave. I passed on the money to a security person and by the use of a mobile phone made frantic attempts to convey the message that the security person would pass on some money. Thanks to the Mobile phone, she got the money.
I was really tired and faintish as I entered the flight. There was more news that her flight would only take off after 6 hours; eventually it left after 12 hours of delay. I was in the flight and was getting a cup of coffee and lunch and somehow I reached for my wallet and checked and hidden in between all the credit card slips was a 20 Rs note.
On reaching the hill station we were visibly surprised, I should say shocked. We both were sweating after a short walk. The place was not even cooler than my hometown Bangalore (Bengalooru). We did go around and see the sights and the many suicide points that were available. Suicide points become good tourist spots, what an irony. I am not sure how people would like to end their lives from a point where life and nature looks just beautiful and perfect.
We stayed there till most of our cash reserves were nearly depleted. Money depletes like fuel on a vacation (and when not on a vacation too). The more you have the faster it goes. We just saved enough to get back to the city where we had access to the banks and ATMs. We had money in the bank but what we did not have was time. The day we reached back at the city we had to hurry and rush to the airport. It was mid noon and we still had not had time to eat our breakfast too.
My ticket was paid by our lovely organization (I was not sarcastic readers). My wife's ticket was on a low cost airline, which we now call a "Cheap Airline". Again it was economics that made us do this. The flights were 30 minutes apart so I took all the baggage and proceeded while my wife waited for her turn to proceed to the Security check. I thought it was just 30 minutes between us so I did not really bother much that she did not have any money.
I thought while I waited for my flight I could get a coffee. I had a big 500 Rs note. This is a big denomination by Indian standards, the shop personnel refused to change it for me. What luck. Out there my wife just had a 20 Rs may be with her and hoping for a 500 and here I had a 500 hoping that I had a 20.
Soon there was news that her flight had a technical snag and would be delayed by 3 hours. So I had to leave her hungry, waiting at the airport for her flight with no money. Just then it struck me that I would as well pass on the 500 to her, who knows when her flight would leave. I passed on the money to a security person and by the use of a mobile phone made frantic attempts to convey the message that the security person would pass on some money. Thanks to the Mobile phone, she got the money.
I was really tired and faintish as I entered the flight. There was more news that her flight would only take off after 6 hours; eventually it left after 12 hours of delay. I was in the flight and was getting a cup of coffee and lunch and somehow I reached for my wallet and checked and hidden in between all the credit card slips was a 20 Rs note.
posted by Thanai at 3:15 PM
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