Tom Paxton - Is This Any Way To Run An Airline? lyrics

Oh, the airline ticket reservation counter lady Is a very special friend of mine When I asked her in the morning if my flight was ready She a**ured me it was right on time Oh, the taxi to the airport cost me seven or eight And the porter got another buck or two When some joker on the microphone said, “Sorreee But we've got a little bad news for you” It's getting cloudy up in Boston Montreal is socked in tight Washington is closed for Christmas Philadelphia's out on strike Minnesota's up to here in snow And Tulsa's closed tonight you know Please be patient five more minutes Hope you have a pleasant flight Oh, the airline pa**enger relations representative Was very sympathetic to me Just as soon as we completely overhaul your astro-liner You'll be airborne just as quick as can be Then of course we'll need a stewardess but never you mind We'll have one trained in plenty of time Won't you settle in our astro-lounge in comfort We'll be leaving at a quarter of nine But the astro-lounge was crowded and the coffee shop was crammed The coke machine was broken and they closed the hot dog stand I couldn't find a magazine, they broke the cigarette machine The shoeshine boy was sleeping, and my radio was jammed Oh, I carefully examined every corner of the building For the next fourteen hours or so And the bulletins kept coming from the reservation counter “Yessiree we're getting ready to go For we're flying in another plane from London you see Any minute now that plane should appear You'll be leaving in a minute, providing This little bit of nasty weather should clear” For it's getting cloudy up in Boston And it's snowing up in Maine Los Angeles is hopeless And Chicago's getting rain You've had a couple dirty days But your ticket's good for thirty days And when the runway is completed Would you like to board your plan