42 lines
1.9 KiB
Plaintext
42 lines
1.9 KiB
Plaintext
Subject: Life in an alternative universe
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I knew it was going to be a bad day when, on opening the door to the travel
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agency, I saw the same guy who used to work at the Ford place. He bounded
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from behind his desk and came to the door to shake my hand, a most unusual
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behavior for a travel agent.
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"Good morning! May I sell you a Hawaiian vacation?" he asked.
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"No, thanks, I just need an airline ticket from Boston to Baltimore,"
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I said. "I need to go on Thursday."
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"I have just the thing for you," he said. "First class, change only
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once in Denver. Dynamite seats on these airplanes, yes sir!"
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"No, I just need a coach ticket. And isn't there a direct flight from
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Boston to Baltimore without stops?"
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"I like a man who does his homework," he said. "You'd be amazed how many
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people just come in and ask about all the flights they can find. Will you be
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trading in another ticket?"
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I was beginning to get irritated. "I don't have a ticket now. That's why
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I'm here. What flights are there to Baltimore on Thursday morning?"
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"If I could get you a departure time you liked, would you buy a ticket
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_today_?" You could see that he was hungry. "Here's a flight at 10:30."
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"No, I need to be there by ten. Is there something around 8:00?"
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"You are a skillful bargainer," he countered. "I'll have to ask my manager."
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He disappeared for a few minutes. "My manager says he can give you an 8:30
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departure, no earlier. Of course, you'll want to buy flight insurance and our
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special carry-on bag..."
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I got up and headed for the door. Surely there's another travel agent
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somewhere. Maybe Japan Air Lines flies to Baltimore. Or Lufthansa. As I
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left, I could hear him calling, "You know, these flights to Baltimore are
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very rare...Consumer Reports rated Baltimore very highly...We may not be able
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to get any more of these tickets..."
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--
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