In time…

I always make it a point to be punctual or on time and as far as possible, I would make sure that I would not make it just in time, at the very last minute…or maybe, I am a little bit to the other extreme. I would always give myself ample time so much so that when I had to pick my boys for some competition and I told them I would pick them up at 6.00 a.m., they would remark, “Oh dear!!! We would have to be ready by 5 then!” LOL!!! They knew me so well.

Things happen – we’d never know so I do think it would be best to be prepared. Once, I was sending a cousin of mine to the airport to catch a flight…

…and suddenly, I had a problem with one of my back wheels. The rubber peeled off and all the metal wires and whatever inside came out. I had to call my missus to come in the other car to send my cousin so she would be in time and not miss the flight. In the meantime, I got somebody to come and change and fix the wheel. He said that I had had the wheel for too long and that sometimes would happen.

On another occasion, I was sending my girl to the airport – she was flying back to college. Suddenly, the car refused to budge and I stalled by the roadside. I called an ex-student who was driving a taxi at the time and he came in a jiffy so my girl was able to make it in time. I also called my mechanic and he said that I could drive…very slowly and make my way to his workshop. According to him, there was some blockage and the engine would stop if I exceeded a certain speed so I had to go at  a snail’s pace to get him to fix it.

Of course, there are airlines that would take off earlier…

…or later according to their whims and fancies so one would have to make sure there would be “room to swing the cat” whichever way it might be…and some can be quite notorious for delays and cancellations…

Never mind if there is a delay, I would just wait…and that is why if I am taking connecting flights, I would see that the flights are far apart so that in the case of a delay in the first one, I would not miss the subsequent one.

That was why when I went to New Zealand sometime ago…

…I stopped in Auckland for so many hours just to be sure instead of choosing a flight that would leave much sooner after I had arrived.

Oh yes! There was this time when I went for lunch with my cousins in Kuching and we sat and chatted and forgot about the time completely!!! When we realised  the time, we had to rush to the airport. My cousin said it was all right – she would take a bypass, no jam…and we would be there very quickly but it so happened that that day, they had some road construction works or something and we were held up. I did reach the counter in time – they had started opening the seats to those on waiting list already but since I had a confirmed ticket, they gave my seat back to me. Unfortunately, their baggage check-in had closed already for that flight so I had to carry the luggage with me – thankfully, I did not have a lot. I ran all the way and made it to my seat in the aircraft…

…just in time. I could hear my heart beating so very fast that I was afraid it would just explode!!! I certainly would not want something like that to happen ever again…especially at my age at this point in time! My heart would not be able to take it, I’m sure.

So if ever we have a date and you appear, don’t ask if I have been waiting long, Chances are I would have been there for at least half an hour already or longer but it is perfectly all right. It is just me…and yes, I am very patient. I don’t mind waiting, not in the least…and I am not all that fond of people waiting for me.

Well, my sister-in-law was not in time when she sent these lovely prawn fritters…

…over to my house early the other morning. She had got up to cook them before going to work and she dropped them off at my house on the way but I had already had breakfast…

…feasting on the sausages that I got from my cousin in Australia. I would say she was on time as far as the ladies in the house were concerned though and they were able to enjoy the fritters when they got up…and I did get to enjoy them myself as well later in the day for tea. Hehehehe!!!!