I rang up a banker friend at one of the bulge bracket firms the other day, wondering whether he might have time for a drink at Captain’s Bar after work.
I thought it might be a long shot, as he’s usually chained to his desk until the wee hours, but to my surprise he agreed, even suggesting meeting for mid-morning coffee, when typically he would be schmoozing with clients. I readily took him up on the offer.
We met near his office and enjoyed an hour or two downing an indecent amount of espresso — his regular, but mine splashed with a little whisky (the perks of being retired, you see).
But just as my thoughts were turning to lunch, he suddenly brought our meeting to an abrupt end, saying he had to rush off for an appointment.
Puzzled, I asked where he was going. It turned out he had scheduled a lunchtime physiotherapy session, having pulling a muscle playing golf with clients.
Sensing my displeasure at his cutting our meeting short, he offered to make up for it. “Let’s go for drinks after lunch,” he volunteered. “On my tab.”
I eyed him with suspicion. “Don’t you have a day job?” I asked.
“Nah,” he replied, before correcting himself. “Of course I have a job, but there’s nothing happening that my juniors can’t handle. So I’m pretty free.”
I guess some good things can come out of tough situations.