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Sleep Well, America

I swear O’Hare Airport, Chicago is the true physical reincarnation of Hell on earth. Why it was designed with vast cathedral ceilings is quite beyond me. I sit here by the security checkpoints waiting hopefully for the queue to subside before presenting myself for the next indignity to be heaped on my person by over-officious petty officialdom. Having been “hand-patted” all over once, prior to my flight into Chicago, I feel fairly secure in the knowledge this time will be worse.

The racket in Terminal 5 is cacophonous. One expects a fairly substantial background hum with so many people milling about, but it is the fraught shrieks and screams of officialdom that overlay the more polite conversing of the multitude.

In their infinite wisdom, Homeland Security has, it was announced, raised the scare level to “Orange”. Of course, they referred to it by a more official phrase than “scare level”, but it meant the same thing.

Taking full advantage of the opportunity to be even bossier than usual, an overly-large black, unformed lady vigorously thrusts unsuspecting passengers through the barriers while shrieking to the world, at the full decibel level of her cavernous lungs:

“Make sure yer go’ yer passperts and burdin’ pesses in yer hands, now!”

Finally, I negotiate security and make the relative peace and quiet of the boarding gate. I am due to board for the long haul across the Atlantic, in just a few minutes.

Hopefully, I will arrive safely in Manchester, England, while America sleeps. It will be 8.30 am England, but only 2.30am in the US.

Sleep well, America.

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5 Replies to “Sleep Well, America”

  1. I’ve always wanted a lot of security.
    Do you think that if i wore my biggest hajeb and went down to O’Hare to shout ‘Allah Hu Akhbar!’ a few times, i’d get it?

    Congratulations on having survived the ‘Code Level Carrot’ at O’Hare (sorry; Mary started it!)… take a deep breath…

    Welsh days are ahead!

  2. Then there is the 9 dollar chicken sandwich that is 50% gristle. That was my only food other than the baby pretzels. Good luck and have a wonderful time.

  3. Back in the recesses of my memory there is a warning not to use O’Hare. Of life of me, I can’t remember if it had to do with it being way too busy, chaotic, record holder of near misses or bad chicken sandwich?

  4. here’s hoping that you enjoy your sojourn back to the tranquility and peace of the welsh mountains. I remember them well…..

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