I FORGOT TO PUT MY SUITCASE IN THE CAR!!
I froze in panic as I stared at the empty trunk of my car. The euphoria of finding a very convenient spot in the airport parking lot – literally next to the entry doors – was extremely short lived. As it happens so often during panic mode, my mind went through a whirlwind of thoughts and images over the next few seconds…

For a fraction of a second, I entertained the thought of going back home but promptly ditched it at the first thought of traffic clogged Atlanta roads during office time.

“Can I manage by buying clothes at my destination?”
“Depends upon where I am going and how much time I have”, I logically reasoned to myself.

“Speaking of which, where I am I going?” [That was the first bright thought I had this morning]
“WAIT A MINUTE. Where am I going? Why am I at the airport?”

A few nanoseconds of blanking out. And then I realized that I was in the wrong place!!

I had a breakfast meeting at a hotel near the airport!!! I was not supposed to be at the airport at all!! (at least that explained why I did not have a suitcase).

It turns out that I had put my car and my mind in autopilot mode while driving to meet an executive at a hotel near the airport. I was so lost in my thoughts that I simply followed my every week pattern and showed up inside the airport parking lot!!!

“Now I am going to be late for the breakfast meeting and I am behind on coffee”, I thought as I got back into the car.

It sure beat missing a suitcase on a trip though 🙂