I was strapped into the middle seat near the back row on a single-aisle jet from Denver to Sea-Tac yesterday, and considered the likelihood that this could easily be mistaken for a new form of torture which common sense suggested should be sanctioned by International Treaty!

Alas, economy tickets are what I had, the middle seat all that was available, and I wished to return home ASAP!

Normally, in such a situation, there is an exercise my mind takes which I remember doing for many years. I think to myself: "Emulate a Zen Master, become the Bhudda." (Not that I can instantly be any better at this than usual, but it's better than having something weird happen, like a leg cramp, panic attack, twisted back pain, bad headache or worse...)

I say to myself, "What would a guru do?".

So after contemplating this for a while, a joke comes into my mind, which I don't think Peter made up, but I know I first heard it from him, and it tickled him to tell it at appropriate occasions. The joke was:

"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana."

A few moments later, Dobe's Koan occurred to my conscious mind:

"Why doesn't time fly when I do?"