When I worked for Bank One, I always looked forward to the annual sales trip. Today's Tale From The ORANGE ROOM comes from Dallas Texas. As usual, the days were full of classes and seminars. Hours of role playing and note taking. Managers from Bank One, all over the country, found themselves sitting shoulder to shoulder exchanging best sales practices and learning new skills. They were long grueling days but.....the nights were for PLAY!!! I always made sure no matter how much we partied the night before, I made it the the next days break out sessions. However, many of my colleagues did not!
Now all of my co managers from the bank were about 8 to 10 years younger than me. So I had already been off the chain so to speak, but for some of these guys, it was like children in a candy store. Many were married , but these guys never knew when to call it a night.
One evening found us drinking at a loud club somewhere miles from our hotel. I think we went to many bars that night, but as the clock got closer to 11:30, the guys decided we were going to find a strip club downtown. I told them, I wanted to call it a night and that a strip club was probably an expensive and bad idea. I was mocked and laughed at. The old dude!!! Party pooper.....all that stuff. The thing was, I was wasted and I know they had to have been worse off than me!!! I called a cab and decided it was best that I exit stage left!!!!
I had never been in a taxi cab by myself in my life let alone one in Dallas Texas. I gave the guy my hotel address and stretched out in the dark backseat, tired and tipsy. As we got into the city and closer to our hotel, we routinely began stopping at red lights. It was at one of these stops that I decided to break my silence and start a conversation. I remember the driver was African American and quite a big man. At the next stop light I asked him a question." I bet you see a lot of crazy things with your job, don't you"? The light was still red when he answered my question. Before I could take my next breath, The cabbie was pointing a silver REVOLVER directly AT MY FACE!!!! He was looking at me and the gun was about 12 inches from my head!!!! He said, "is that crazy enough for ya"? HOLY SHIT!!! I could see the light go from red to green from behind the chamber of the gun and could see quite clearly it was LOADED!!! This is it!!!! I'm going to die now!!!! The light was still green as he put the gun back on the seat or wherever it came from and continued in traffic. Not another word was spoken. I actually thought about asking him to stop at a liquor store earlier but decided the less time I spend in this cab the better.
I paid driver from Hell and rode the elevator up to my room. I asked room service to bring me a 6 pack of Miller Lite and my bill was $36.00. I didn't care. I was in shock!!! I called my wife and told her why I just spent $36.00 on beer.....like I needed it. But, I DID!!! She seemed happy I was still alive and understood my beer purchase.
The next day was a short day of break out sessions and as usual, my co workers stayed in bed and missed them. We met up after I got out of classes and decided that we could see some of the city in the daylight as our flight was not scheduled out till the early evening. Being intrigued by the assignation of President Kennedy, I decided we would regret not taking a cab down to DEALEY PLAZA and see the place where Kennedy was assassinated. I stood at the X where he was hit. I witnessed the GRASSY KNOLL where conspiracy theories had a second gunman placed. Perhaps he was related to the cabbie from last night!!!! The one who pointed the gun at me." It think the shot came from the grassy Knoll," I kept thinking to myself. Finally, up to the museum on the 6th floor of the Texas Book Depository and then to the airport....I thought.
Instead of heading directly to the airport, the guys decided we had plenty of time to hit a local sportsbar and play some video games and drink beer before our flight. I kept saying, "another bad idea guys". An hour later we were in the back of a cab looking at our watches saying, "we have 10 minutes ...I think we can still make it". My heart sank as I knew there wasn't a chance in hell. Of course we missed the flight and had
to wait for the next one. So did our spouses at the Peoria Airport!!!
As we walked off the plane, the wives looked at us with displeasure. Perhaps a gunman should have taken us out back at the grassy knoll !!!!!
Just another TALE FROM THE ORANGE ROOM.
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