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It's a crowded afternoon at JFK. Mostly business travelers but as I take a seat in the waiting area I notice a young woman sitting across from me who is closely watching a toddler. The child stands precariously and clutches the handle of the seat. As I sit he watches me with big eyes. "Hi." I say, smiling at him. He looks at me for a moment and then his whole face opens up into a bright smile. I admire his ability to give himself over so completely to his joy. Then he releases his grip on the chair and reaches out toward me. The sudden shift of his weight unbalances him and he falls forward. I catch my breath but somehow his mother manages to catch him before he hits the floor. He immediately begins to cry from fright. Standing she holds him close and begins to make soft comforting noises. "Mom to the rescue." I comment, smiling at her. "You have quick reflexes," I add. "Instinct," she says glancing up at me. "I spend all day watching over him. He keeps me on my toes." She pauses for a moment and then looking around asks, "can you watch my things for a moment? I want to walk him around so that he will stop crying." "Sure," I respond. I watch her for a moment as she wanders off, her charge quickly quieting as the fear passes. I turn my attention back to my bag and as I pull my new programming book out notice a blond haired man, dressed in a nice business suit, approach and sit down 2 seats to my right. This guys someone, I think to myself as he pulls out his palm pilot. "Hi," he says looking at me. I feel a tingling run up my spine and my mind is suddenly clearer. I"Hello," I reply. He glances at the JAVA book that sits forgotten in my lap. "Are you a programmer?" He asks. "I'm learning," I respond. Holding up the book briefly I continue. "I'm taking a JAVA class." "Um," he nods his head, "that's a good language to know. Study the parts about object oriented programming carefully. It's not only a good way to program, but a good way to view life." For a moment he looks at me and time seems to stop. I open my mouth to respond but no words seem necessary. He smiles and nods his head slightly and then returns his attention to his Palm Pilot. I find myself forgotten. Just like with the child. One minute he's focusing on one thing and then his attention moves on to something new, the past forgotten. I return my attention to my book and begin reading. I skip over the introductory sections 'About the Author' and 'Who This Book is For' and go straight to the first chapter on object oriented programming. Quickly I find myself immersed in objects, abstraction and inheritance. "Wow, this is easy," I think to myself. Suddenly, I realize that the young woman has returned and she is gathering her things. The man slips past between us. "Boarding for LA?" I ask her. "Yes," she says. "First class and those of us with small children. I'll see you on board." She heads off toward the gate carrying the child and towing her bag. I watch her for a moment until the public address speaker intones. "Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. We will now begin boarding coach class seating for flight 564 to Los Angeles. At this time we would like all passengers in rows 10 through 29 to come forward to board the aircraft. Once again, that's rows 10 through 29 for flight 564 to Los Angeles boarding at gate 32." "22-c That's me," I think to myself. I quickly slip my book back into the top compartment of my bag and pull my tickets out of the side compartment. I weave my way through the crowd of people waiting for later boarding and stop in a short line at the gate. After a few moments the friendly female ground attendant takes my boarding pass and I continue onward to another line waiting in the jet-way. "Lines, lines, lines." I comment to myself. "This world seems to have a lot of lines. Of one kind or another." I smile to myself at the hidden meaning and slowly move onto the aircraft. I find myself standing in first class waiting to move onward when the slightly impatient fellow behind accidentally bumps me with his bag. I lose my grip on my own carry-on and it drops to the floor dumping my JAVA book on the impeccably polished right shoe of the man from the concourse. "Sorry," I say as he bends down to retrieve the book. For a moment he holds it, studying the cover and then holding it out to me he says, "There are millions of dollars to be made in JAVA. Study it carefully." Once again I feel that tingling sensation in my spine. "Thanks!" I respond, taking the book from him. He must be some sort of hotshot software executive. "I was really getting into it out there in the concourse. Object oriented programming seems so easy to understand." "Yes, it is. But it's really versatile and in big demand." "Cool, I'll check it out." Somehow the man looks familiar but a big gap has opened up in front of me and I can feel the impatience of those behind so I move on to find my seat. I quickly get settled in and the seat next to me turns out to be empty, thus allowing me a little room to breathe. I return my attention to my book and find myself digging into my first 'Hello World' program. I learn about classes, methods and applets. Soon I am digging into variables and expressions. The flight whizzes by while I am engrossed in the book. I can't imagine that a computer book could be quite this fascinating. As we pull up to the gate at LAX I think back to the man sitting up in first class. It is only then that I realize who it must be. Why of course, it's Cool Dude. Maybe I can catch him and have a few more words with him. As I rise to disembark I can see the top of his head above the others in front of me. He quickly exits and I am delayed. As I finally leave the jetway I can see him far down the concourse. I will catch him at baggage claim I think to myself. But it turns out to be a vain hope. Cool Dude travels too light to require that much baggage. He's out of here.
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