THE OLDER THE WINE…

Hello People,

Firstly, let me apologise for the long silence. In the last few months, my job description changed and i was saddled with more responsibility. It's been hectic, but God has indeed been my strength. So! Here's something... let me know if you like it ok?

With love from Chioma.

They say that there are only a few guys that every girl must date before eventually getting married; the good guy, the bad guy and the older guy. In my case, after my own fair share of the good, the bad and the ugly I knew that it was only a matter of time before the laws of the universe sent an older guy my way.

It all happened one Thursday afternoon when I went for a presentation to a prospective client. I woke up that morning feeling really good and I tried to put that feeling into my look that day. So when I arrived at the client’s office, I was beaming with a smile and dressed to kill. A few minutes later, I was ushered into the board room where a met with five executives one of which was a handsome middle aged gentle man with a distinctive grey moustache. As I started my presentation, I tried to maintain eye contact as I was trained to but I couldn’t help but notice the Mr. Grey moustache was busy on his blackberry phone throughout. At first, I found it quite peculiar but as we progressed, I found the attitude quite rude. At the end of the session, while we concluded negotiations, he was the first to bolt out of the boardroom without managing a “goodbye”

“Who does he even think he is?!”I was fuming on the phone to my friend Kate* an hour after the awkward meeting, “If he wasn’t interested in the product, he could have just stayed away! No one had a gun to his head!!!” Kate did her best to calm me and advised me to hope for the best from the other four interested executives. A week later, I got a call from the client’s secretary inviting me for a meeting with the Chairman as he needed to clarify before signing the deal. I was so excited about the upcoming meeting with the Chairman because I knew that meeting him would boost my chances at getting that account. The only curious thing was that the meeting was on a Saturday afternoon and when I asked the reason for such an unusual time, the secretary informed me that the Chairman was least occupied at that time.

I showed up at the office early and when I knocked, I was quite shocked when Mr. Grey moustache opened the door. “Hi!” he said and smiled as if he was genuinely excited to see me at the door. I managed a forced smile and informed him of the purpose of my visit. “Yeah, I know, Come on in”, he answered and ushered me into the office. I noticed the office was less crowded and the staff was casually dressed as it was a weekend. As I followed Mr. Grey moustache in, I had ample time to look at him from behind. He could have been between 50 and 60 but he walked with the gait of a 20 year old. He was wearing a tee shirt and blue jeans and I must say, smelt like a million bucks. “If only he didn’t have such a bad attitude”, I mumbled under my breath.

He led me into a large office and asked me to please shut the door and have a seat. Then he walked behind huge table and sat into the large arm chair. “YOU are the CHAIRMAN?” I blurted. “You sound disappointed” he laughed as he reached for his phone and started punching the keys. I apologized for my reaction and we went right into the business of the day. I started to look at him differently when I realized that he had all the information from my presentation that I had assumed he was not interested. At the end of the meeting, I got to know a few things about Mr. Grey moustache, like his name, which was Sydney* and yes, he was indeed born in Sydney, Australia. He founded the company a few years ago in the US and started running the Lagos office when he relocated last year.

As he escorted me outside the office premises, I found myself drawn to him in a very curious manner. I wasn’t sure whether it was the grey moustache or the obvious power he wielded. He could have been at least three times my age and though he was good-looking, he didn’t quite fit my “type”. As I drove away, I couldn’t help thinking of what it would be like to date someone his age. He belonged to the generation that still opened doors for ladies and stood up for the lady to sit at the table. My curiosity got the better part of me; this was one dish I was willing to try.

 He smiled at me as he waved when I drove out of the parking lot. I knew that smile; that definitely would not be our last meeting…