18 May 009, JFK, NY

New York and Los Angeles are indistinguishable from the sky. There are suburbs, track homes, consumerist villages and non-native trees. There are skyscrapers and an ocean. Even in the airport the people look the same. The businessmen & women, the transients, the students, the TSA employees. I walked outside to light a fix and check out possible photo ops. Someone bums from me. The airport employee is impressed with my carton of smokes. He is impressed by my clothing, the size of my bag and the ease with which I carry it. He is impressed. I feel the same. He tells me his name is William. I tell him mine and I feel like I'm lying. He says, "See you soon I hope!" I say the same. There are millions of people in New York. Many impressive people. Today I am one of them. I will never see William again.