It's good to talk ... particularly to your colleagues

I checked in quite early for the flight on Monday morning. Boarded and buckled into my seat on the plane, a colleague rushed in just before the doors closed and sat down in the seat beside me. He'd arrived at check-in a lot later, and got held up in the lengthening security queues.

We briefly shared grumbles about air travel, before be fell asleep, and I read the papers.

Getting off the plane, we said cheerio, and I went to collect my bag from the luggage belt. Train into Paddington, Bakerloo tube up to Harrow, train to Apsley, and a short walk to the building the meeting was being held in.

Last to arrive, I squeezed into the only remaining chair ... beside guess who? My colleague from the flight. He'd driven up from Heathrow.

But since we hadn't discussed where we were going, or even what we were both working on these days, it came as a complete shock that we'd been unwittingly racing each other to Apsley.

Moral of story - it's good to talk. It could get you a free lift to where you're going.