Planes,

Ever notice how Americans order drinks on a plane? "I wanna a Coke." Or, "Gimme a Coke." Or, sometimes they just grunt, "Coke." Whatever happened to, "May I have...?" Or, "May I please have..." Flying today closely resembles taking a Trailways Bus. I took the bus a lot in the Army and in college. I liked it. You could sit in the back and drink beer and smoke cigarettes. But my shoes were not as nice as these. British Tan Tassel loafers made by Alden for Brooks Brothers. They are fitting for summer cotton suits and hop sack blazers with white trousers. I love 'em though I'm not sure why.

Trains

30th Street Station in Philadelphia. One of my favorite train stations in one of my least favorite towns. And like a lot of things I love - - I'm not sure why. Filled with fast food franchises it's beginning to look like a mall but it still has a charm about it despite a horrible taxi stand.

and Automobiles

No pretensions here. It's a station wagon with over 100,000 miles. The Brits call it an estate. They also call a back yard a garden and a tent a marquis. This wagon is full of crap for the month of August. This is a car that not only sucks up massive amounts of crap in the back but gobbles up highway miles, appears to be invisible to the police and thanks to the hunter green paint job, disappears on the highway at dusk. Still, I love it although I'm not sure why. After dealing with the Planes and the Trains - - it's nice to sit in, as my friend Wally calls it, "quiet elegance" while listening to the Clash on it's amazing Bose stereo.