another brutal day of early arising, bus to plane to plane. and a migraine. faugh. but about to arrive in Phoenix, well, sort of. still 2.5 hours off, but after nine hours of flying, that seems like a short hop. no idea what will greet me there, with the recent events. was contemplating a relaxing holiday preparing for the re-location to Boulder in January.
reflections. Finland for the last time in a while. the silence of the pre-pre-dawn moments. waiting for the airport bus in the cold darkness. the blur of the movement. fighting a migraine the whole way. and again being a silent seat-partner to a young French woman. happy that the aircrew is offering water every hour or so. here on the trans-Atlantic plane. crossing Ice Land, Green Land, Arctic Canada, Hudsons Bay, Winnipeg, then south-west to elsewhere, and finally landing in Amurika. with the associated blast of that Amurikan-ness. how to deal with? green teen-age soldiers try to act with authority and disdain. in the face of the unknown of terror. while the echo of the Cold Warriors are everywhere, fearing every Other.