For a fellow who had missed FOUR internat. flights, 2 ½ hrs early by the gate was A-OK. At the boutiques along the corridors the ice-cold starlets had loomed with bags & watches, calling out all the losers. (Fantasies of the Soviet austerity; some modicum of purity.) Eye contact anywhere almost completely verboten, even from many of the salesgirls in the uniforms, the makeup & lashes, shaking out the cobwebs early morning. Usual probs at check-in. That is your boarding pass, sir. Downloaded by yourself without yourself knowing. Latino lady, the Euro shine worn off a week later, if there had been any for that poor dear, single mum likely. The fine, mostly sunny was always welcome, especially after a couple of days light drizzle in the driest autumn on record on the driest continent. No slick on the tarmac to worry about, slide onto the grass, fire trucks, &etc. Strange you might actually miss Brunetti’s a wee tiny bit, even after how many months unable to stomach the stage-set indoors. One has to be somewhere, the Norwegian Nobel Fosse had it. (Was there a Roman archbishop on the panel last year? 745pp of slow, slow-slow repetitive dribble.) Again pre-dawn thoughts of Era the Minanghabau, slowly raised for the squat over the pillow. The surprise of it for a kampung girl such as herself and her masked delight was the whole of the turn-on. Unfortunately, wouldn’t be in town on landing; the reserves would need to be called up to the front. ANNOUNCEMENTS for the hearing impaired. Lass was struggling with all the ethnic names in the radically altered country last couple decades; all over the first world the new middle classes enticed, who cares about their own hospitals, labs & peak industries over there. The Sikh cabbie had talked about his labrador, about comfort pets and his daughter in bio-med, hoping to transfer to vet science. Uniformed lass in the corridor on the end of a leash had been struggling with an excited tail-wagger trying to drag her into one of the boutiques, drawn by the pumped perfumes no doubt. Perhaps they have them on hand now in the airports too; very understandable. Heel clatter over the tiles like artillery in a war zone. Half hour later another early bird, settling himself behind with head-bobbing tunes. A good many smiling faces were anticipated in the days & weeks ahead, though in truth you have made yourself a stranger everywhere now, you jet-setter you. Some concern the front section might in fact be reserved for biz & first—couple others arrived also keeping back in the large pen behind…Yeah, definite demarcation. Blue wheelchair seats were clearly signed, but not all the others adjoining. Would the staff be able to tell you didn’t cut it? Time was nigh to pull the Versace outta the bag and lay it on them. ($35 2.5s @ Sacred Heart without a single scratch.) The stockings! Outbound they had been left in the bag. Soon enough dozens & more dozens arrived, without risking the breach. No! Point blank refuse to budge. Would they have the gall? Couldn’t they see the VVVs staring them in the face? Note-taking would give additional pause; collared shirt, albeit colour-faded. ($10 Sacred H. few years back.)… Well, a pee soon settled that contretemps without trouble. Gee, there was a mass of us great unwashed in cattle, some old Chinese included likely hiding their wealth. Blasted drip at the urinal, no amount of shaking-out availing. Zadni kap ostaje u gace (Slavo). The last drop remains in the trousers. Hopefully the liberally applied essential oils would screen. Clutching the passport against the downloaded boarding pass on the phone, 2-3 minute panic where in the FFF could it have gotten?! In fact no first on these budgets. Despite biz being called, at first nothing to suggest even that cohort from aisle 23. Well, rear of the seats the bright red lower anchor. Delay loading with all the holiday attire. The 10ml eyedrops had been no kinda problem, snappy guy was only interested in 100ml. Almost a full-blown emergency within the dangerous first two minute climbing: drips drenching the girl in the window. 2-3 dozen at the very least, without any pause. Luckily she had donned a hoodie. Not to worry, the phlegmatic little Chinese crew reassured—reason inaudible. Hosing down the wings? the motors? condensation?… The VVV weren’t gonna be removed for the duration. Screen-flippers could get their fill right there before their eyes in the meat world.
An Australian writer of Montenegrin origin, Pavle Radonic has spent ten years living in SE Asia. Previous work has appeared in a range of literary magazines, including most recently QU Literary Magazine, Of Zoos, Superpresent Magazine & New World Writing Quarterly.
