Dear Peggy,
As I mentioned previously there I was quietly settled in my little village in the southwest of France watching the summer arrive and the flowers bloom when the World Bank called and asked if I would like to come back to Washington and work on a project for a few months. No not to replace President Wolfowitz, just to help out with a telecom project.
So as it is an opportunity to see my children and as I have scheduled medical tests due with Drs. Ed Cullen and Sean Dwyer et al, and as the Bank bought the airline ticket here I am back in the US until late July. It is a funny old life, each time you think things are spiralling down as appropriate for retirement and approaching (increasing ??) decrepitude, up pops a chance to go rattling off on another journey.
And of course for there is the pleasures of to-days airline travel;
At check in, why must you have an isle seat sir ?, to make it easier to go pee every few hours and put the people next to me at reduced risk of waking up suddenly and violently mistaking why I am trying to crawl across their laps and consequently causing us both to become damp and odorous.
Having the security people triumphantly seize the toothpaste tube with little bit of toothpaste remaining that you have purposefully left in order to comply with the rules, but the regulations say under 3-oz is allowed, yes sir but the container exceeds the length allowed. Let me roll it up, no sir that is not allowed, can I borrow one of the many pairs of dangerous nail scissors you have seized and cut off the required amount of the tube, no sir but you are holding things up and I will have to ask you to step aside or I will have to call my supervisor.
Then the announcement we are now ready to board, so we all shuffle into the required long line with the anxious the halt and those looking forward to a long flight with small children at the head, the announcement the captain has found a technical problem so please sit down, followed less than 2 minutes later by the problem has been cleared and we are ready to board. Chaos with those that were previously checked through insisting that they go first and the last now trying to be first.
Enjoying airline food, will you have the chicken or pasta ? no thanks I brought my own sandwich, half a baguette with salted butter, Serrano ham and Dijon mustard – wait a minute I forgot it and the apple in the mini fridge in the hotel, I will take the pasta, sorry sir only chicken left.
On the descent into Dulles where we hit a sustained period of turbulence and the pilot announced in French, it was Air France after all, cabin staff please be seated immediately as we are experiencing severe turbulence. Followed later by a now securely belted cabin staff person telling us in English we are experiencing turbulence and to please return to our seats and fasten our seat belts. This was news for all the ashen faced passengers with white knuckled hands clasping their arm rests. God knows what it did to those in the toilets with one hand full of toilet paper and the other between their knees clasping their underwear.
Ah well if you are terrified in a confined space it is a small comfort to know that if you fall to earth at least I didn’t pay for the ticket.
More later on the opportunities for upward mobility at the Bank, although that may have only been available to those serving under Mr W. such as his girlfriend
I will give you a call during the week.
John