Maisie is Upset. I can tell, because she came home from school and is being Very Quiet.
I am chopping up onions in the kitchen.
Maisie is drawing at the kitchen table. This is Very Odd as usually she is watching Miley Syrus or similar on the Disney Channel.
‘What are you drawing ?’ I ask.
‘Nothing.’ she says.
‘Nothing ?’ I say.
‘No, Nothing. says Maisie.
She is drawing Nothing very carefully with lots of colours.
‘Are you Worried about something ?’ I ask Maisie.
‘Actually,’ says Maisie ‘Like most people of my generation. I am Worried About Everything.’
Sometimes Maisie says very surprising things. I sift through all the Detritus in my Head to see if I can Drum Up any Sympathy for Maisie’s Generation.
I can’t.
I think I must be very Unempathetic.
‘Maisie looks at me coldly. ‘And actually,’ she adds ‘That is Not Funny.’
I must have been smiling.
‘Today,’ says Maisie ‘we had a Debate at school. Me and Leanna were on the side of Not Having Circus Animals and Jackson G and Joshua were in favour of Having Them. Do you think we should have Circus Animals or Not?’
I stop chopping onions.
‘I don’t care.’ I say.
‘Well, I don’t care either.’ says Maisie. ‘But we Had to be on A Side. I am more worried about Polar Bears and Global Warming.’ She is colouring in The Nothing Picture quite vigourously now, using a Red Felt Pen.
I feel a little bit of Empathy stirring somewhere deep down under the Detritus.
‘Anyway’, says Maisie ‘that’s not the point. the point is, that Jackson G...’
‘Are there 2 Jacksons?’ I ask.
‘Yes.’ says Maisie ‘Obvs.’ she says. Jackson G. and Jackson A. They’re Both on the side of Having Circus Animals. And so is Joshua.’ she puts down her Red Felt Pen and screws up the Nothing. She throws the Nothing into the kitchen bid with a quick accurate flick of her wrist.
‘Well done.’ I say.
‘Jackson G.’ says Maisie ‘was being really stupid. He was saying that Leanna didn’t have a Side and that Leanna and me didn’t know what we were talking about. He was all Red in the Face and he was being stupid so Leanna slapped him round the Face and Pinched him. It made him cry.’ Maisie leans back on her chair and folds her arms. ‘I was Pleased.’ she says. ‘I still am Pleased that Leanna did that. I would never have done it myself, but I was pleased. What do you think of that ?’
‘I think you have a Dark Side.’ I say.
‘Thank you.’ says Maisie. She stands up and tosses her red gold hair out of her ice blue eyes and regards me dispassionately. ‘Sometimes,’ she says ‘You are Quite Clever. Most people just think I’m Nice.
Zac is standing behind me in the kitchen doorway.
‘I don’t think she’s nice.’ He says.
Friday 12th september 2008.
Air Excel.
Air Excel have Gone Bust.
They have been Crunched by The Credit Crunch and their planes are Grounded.
The newspaper says, mostly they are Grounded in Europe but some are Grounded in the West Indies. I try to imagine flying all the way to the West Indies in an Air Excel plane and I fail.
Air Excel have left 67.000 passengers Stranded around the Globe. If they had gone Bust a week earlier we would have been stranded in Corfu.
I try to imagine the Very Tired Rep dealing with 67,000 Stranded Holiday Makers and I feel Very Sorry for her.
I would have liked to be Stranded in Corfu. It would have been fun.
Richard Branson says that he will fly all the Stranded Holiday Makers home because he has lots of very Big Planes and is Terribly Nice as well as being Terribly Successful.
Air Excel say they would rather fly them home themselves but they are not allowed to take off.
A Stranded Holiday Maker says he is fed up with the whole situation. ‘It’s political correctness gone mad.’ he says.
I wonder if Duncan Goodhew will get another job.
‘Air Excel have Gone Bust.’ I tell Zac as I drive him to the bus stop. John says I shouldn’t drive Zac to the bus stop as he’squite big enough to get there by himself. but I like to because it’s the only time I get to chat to Zac.
‘Oh,’ says Zac. ‘Well I’m not surprised.’ he says ‘They coudn’t really land a plane properly could they. It’s a really important bit of flying isn’t it ? And they couldn’t really do it. Do you think Duncan Goodhew will go back to swimming?’
Ellie comes over. Ellie is having a bit of a time because she wants to read English at University. Ellie has a lot of stress and sometimes she literally can’t draw breath. Anyway Maisie told Ellie about Leanna and her attack on Jackson G. ‘And I was pleased.’ says Maisie.
‘What happened to Leanna.’ asks Ellie.
‘Yes.’ Abigail says ‘What happened ?’
‘Well. says Maisie ‘Leanna’s parents are Divorced so she has Anger Issues. Sometimes she can’t quite manage her feelings.’
‘So she got a sticker.’ says Ellie.
‘She didn’t!’ I say.
‘No.’ says Maisie ‘She had to go and see Dean’.
‘And then she got a sticker,’ says Ellie.
‘Did she?’ says Abigail.
‘No.’ says Maisie ‘But she should have done.’
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