A long time coming

So have you been wondering why I haven't done anything stupid in awhile -- 'coz, you know, I have. Until Thursday, that is.

I had an invitation to a luncheon on microfinance, part of the Clinton Global Initiative conference. The luncheon was scheduled to be from 12:45 to 2:00 on Thursday. I was excited to go -- albeit slightly nervous -- and was hoping to get some story ideas out of it. More bylines are always good, right?

The day before the luncheon, I received an email from the PR rep, saying that the time had been changed from 12:45 to 2:45. And on Thursday, I received a voicemail from the PR confirming the time change -- from 12:45 to 2:45.

So about 15 minutes before the appointed time, I checked my make-up, picked up my notebook and sauntered the few blocks to the Sheraton. I walked in and was confronted by groups of people wearing nametags, and purposefully networking. I was directed to the press room to get my credentials. And after a long procedure that involved the taking of a very bad photo, I made it through security and into the press area for the conference.

I walked past a row of rooms lined with desks and laptops, with reporters scattered through them watching a series of screens showing various conference events. It didn't look like anyone was having lunch. And anyway, I had passed the restaurant where the luncheon was supposed to be, and there were just a few stragglers sitting at tables -- certainly nothing that looked like a "luncheon" and certainly no Mohammed Yunnus or Vinod Khosla. Confused, I approached a woman who looked like she was in charge.

"Do you know where the microfinance luncheon is?" I asked her.

Blank stare.

"You know, there's a session on microfinance, that's part of this conference?"

"Ummm, I'm not sure." She consulted the list of conference sessions, and shook her head. "Do you know who's in it?"

I told her.

"Well, it says here they were in a session, but it's over," she informed me.

After a short back and forth and a confused phone call to the PR firm handling one of the panelists, I thanked the woman and walked back to the office, resigning myself to the fact that the luncheon was indeed over.

And it made sense. I had wondered about it, but hadn't given it too much thought. I mean, I had to wonder, right? Why would anyone would start a luncheon so late?

'Coz, you see, when the PR rep said the time had been changed from 12:45 to 2:45, I thought it had been changed TO 2:45. So that's when I went -- at 2:45.