Sitting in the airport café, Ruth says to me “Don’t you think it a bit ominous there is a black out in an international airport? Too true – aren’t airports supposed to be secured against such things? Isn’t’ an emergency generator supposed to kick in at some point? I pondered the effects this might have on the control tower, but before I had time to dwell on this point, a loud “fuck” echoed across the café. We both glanced across at a well-dressed white businessman typing away on his laptop in the booth next to us. No – surely not! But yes – there it came again: “Fuck”! Or was it “farck”? No – definitely “Fuck” with a long drawn out American vowel and the volume to match. Continue reading