The fifteenth day of the tour ...

My phone rang at 4.45 -- a mistaken wake-up call!!!! Groaned and tried to get back to sleep, but couldn't drop off properly. Was picked up at 7.30, then drove out to Salem, about an hour outside Milwaukee, for an event in the Community Library, followed by an event in a nearby school (whose name eludes me). It was quite off the beaten track (like the school I went to yesterday), so the kids and parents were VERY enthusiastic!!! I thought a school would be coming in for the first event in the library, but it turned out to be a public event. Some of the kids there had a day off school, but others bunked-off!!!! My kind of fans!!!!!!! I liked kids and parents who don't stick to the rules all the time!! 

:-)

Arrived at the airport a couple of hours ahead of my flight. Had a bite to eat, then proceeded to security. I took off my shoes as I always do over here in the States (an absolutely needless procedure, by the way, but since most airports insist on it, I figure "What the hell -- just go with the flow!"). But the guy at this checkpoint also told me to remove my SWEATSHIRT!!!! That's the first time, in all the airports in the world that I've been to, that I've been asked to do that! When I asked why, he got a very serious look on his face and said that "a few years ago" a couple of women in baggy sweatshirts boarded a plane in Chechnya and blew it up! I just looked at him blankly and said "They blew up a plane with a sweatshirt?!?" He started to babble then, but I just sneered, handed him my sweatshirt and moved on. The world is full of power-crazy idiots in positions of very mild authority. I find it's easiest just to humour them. You can't argue with a moron, so why try? Besides, with people like that, their workmates will always back them up, so I didn't want to argue with him and have him turn it into a "This guy threatened to blow up our plane!!!" story. When you come face-to-face with a loser who has a bit of power, the best thing is to just walk on by and leave them to rule the roost in their ridiculous imaginary tower of power.

Got to Washington D.C. early and met Jennifer, my publicist, at the airport. I have a rare free night, so once I'm through typing up this, I'm going back to my room to have a nice long bath, then maybe watch a film, or perhaps just channel surf. I have a nice lie-in tomorrow too, so I should be fresh and raring-to-go for my Friday and Saturday events!!!!