I'm Late, I'm Late, I'm Late...

"... No time to say, "Hello, goodbye". I'm late, I'm late, I'm late."

This is what the March Hare said when Alice first met him. And yes he was off rushing to a very important appointment... a tea party with the Mad Hatter and the Door Mouse. Hmmn...

This morning, I was late for a meeting. Thirty-two minutes to be exact. But as usual in the Philippines, and particularly in the public service sector (?!), being late is not only excusable, it is almost mandatory. When I got to the venue, only about twenty people were there (they were expecting 60, I asked), and when I perused the program, not one of the guest speakers were there. Surprise!

After another twenty minutes of waiting I was fidgeting in my seat wondering whether the "consultative meeting" was indeed going to be happening. Some lady, probably sensing the rising impatience of the crowd, went to the front and announced the availability of "free-flowing" coffee. Oh, please! I wanted to plead with her to start the program already!

Finally, somebody started to tinker with the multi-media projector. At last, someone in charge is checking the equipment. But, wait! The snacks are already being served and we have not yet had the opening prayer...!

Somebody finally took notice of the time being wasted and started the ball rolling over two hours from the indicated start time. Whew! The agenda covered lasted at most two hours by itself and the ensuing open forum another hour and half. In all, a meeting that would have lasted half day ate up almost double the time. Talk about time management?!

I shouldn't be surprised, I suppose. But then again, this is the Philippines, not Wonderland...!