Modern life

1. My mother has a theory that budget airlines were started by canny environmentalists who wanted to take all the mystique out of flying by making it as nasty as possible and then dumping you miles from anywhere. She might have a point because I think that most of us now HATE flying. It takes forever and stressful logistics to get anywhere near an airport, and then you have to join queue after queue, holding your documents like a criminal, shuffling forwards and hating the people who push in. It doesn't help that in the north of Italy right now the humidity is something you can actually feel on your face. And then there's getting away from the airport again. Plus on the aircraft there's pretty much bound to be some small child having a tantrum, expressing how we all feel but are too grown up to express. I think there should be a rule that from now on if there's a screaming child on an aeroplane we should all be allowed to just let rip and join in; just open up our mouths and lungs and contribute our own howls of despair and mind-numbed boredom. Everyone's peace is already disturbed, it's often satisfying to express oneself, and it might even startle and amuse or otherwise confound the infant. Actually that could be allowed in other places too. Last time I went to Ikea there was a boy of about five there just screaming No, mummy, no no no! I could have joined in with that one.

2. On the plus side, Tims are great. Since I don't think any of them read this blog, I want to express how excellent are my Tims: Tim my brother Tim has turned out surprisingly well-adjusted and is generally an excellent chap; Young Tim, my college son years back, is now a hotshot lawyer in Singapore and about to be a father; International Tim the compsci is an even hotter shot Microsoft Research Lab researcher. They are all lovely and I am very proud of them; hurray for Tims!

3. Also, there's the Pet Shop Boys. This single has fantastic Brazilian drums (I'm not sure they come out as well via YouTube), Neil smiling, and Chris as a security officer with a truncheon. It's relevant because it involves flying, do you see?