AIRPORT WRITING-- It was a cliche for a while that good writing could be done from airplanes cruising at 3500 feet "where everything seemed so clear. I've never found that to be true but did do a bit of writing in the airports themselves while spending two 12 hour stretchs in the Detroit Metro.

Airports, with people rushing and everyone going somewhere, people leaving and arriving and returning, can be inspiring. The train whistle is a classic muse of this same type but with less and less train travel I think airports could come to fill this void even though (or perhaps because) there is a general frustration in the airport air.

Here's a bit of what I wrote:

Seeing a pretty girl in an airport is a sad thing for a young man. He realizes then, even as he sets off into the world full of vigor, that his world is narrow, his scope is bounded. He knows that the pretty girl walking the other way will be loved by another man.

Through the history of man many a jealous young lord has cast his eyes on a pretty dame and demanded her as his own. This experience is no different, inside. But he sees her passing him, admiring her well formed face, and knows that he will never again see her smile, never make her laugh, never put his arm around her, never touch her skin. A woman with whom he will never be friends or more than friends of just friends is walking away, passing from his narrow world and his limited scope.

He sees her walk by and sees where her shining curls are caught behind her ears and knows how many pretty girls he will never know.