The date above my say Saturday, but I'm typing this on Friday 7:30pm local time.

The air travel has gone pretty well so far. Managed to easily get on the 07:55 to Chicago and what's more got a seat with a bulkhead, so a few inches more leg-room than everyone else in what my dad kindly refers to as cattle-class (how quickly they forget!) - when he's not lighting bonfires (see Steve's new book). Given the lack of sleep at the Yotel (for which I'm being fully reimbursed) I was literally asleep before we left the ground and managed a good 3hrs+ of snoozing of the 8hr flight. This despite being sat on the same row as a man - we'll clal him Biff McPhlegmy - who made the sound of snoring while fully awake. However I ahd the seat on either side of me empty, so I can't complain.

Despite the horror stories about O'Hare airport I didn't experience any real problems and it only took about 30minutes from landing to exiting customs. The Wizard World Convention was also easy to get to - I grabbed a Hyatt shuttle which meant I only had to spend $5 as the tip and the trip was no more than ten minutes. Spent the rest of the day walkign around the con, listening to some interviews and panels and hanging out with Jim O'Hara from the Millarworld boards and Hash from Urban Species.

I'm now back at O'Hare waiting to catch my flight to Iowa (I originally went to Terminal 2 as instructed and was told 'No, you only fly from this terminal, you have to check in your bags in Terminal 1...' Bizarre.

I've just spoken to Jilly and she asked what airline I was flying in on. When I told her she laughed. I have now told her that's not the response an about-to-be-thrown-through-the-air-in-a-hollow-metal-tube passenger may wish to hear before they do so. Apparently it's a wee, tiny aircraft according to Ms McDole. I may yet end up flying in the cockpit.

But as far as revenge goes, I can also reveal that everyone I've told about my visit to Iowa has simply looked puzzled and said 'Why?'

Yes, it's nearly 1:30am and the reason I'm posting is that I'm living through a very physical example of irony. I'm currently at the Yotel at Heathrow as (hopefully) my flight leaves early in the morning. There was quite a bit of noise coming through the walls earlier, sounding like a few repairs going on - distracting - but nothing which was going to keep me from having an early night. However an hour ago I was woken from my troublesome doze by what sounded like a jackhammer on the other side of the wall. Funnily enough it appears there IS a jackhammer on the other side of my wall - there is some construction going on at the airport and... yes, wait for the punchline here... they're having to do it at night so NOT TO DISTURB THE OFFICE WORKERS DURING THE DAY!

Decided enough was enough and went round to the main desk to complain and was promptly joined by two other guests understandably complaining of the same thing. Though it's not Yotel construction as far as I can tell, the front desk were only semi-helpful. They've given ear-plugs - whch isn't much use as this is a vibration issue as much as noise and I believe I'll be refunded my money. But I did point out that it's unfair to Yotel customers and if Yotel DID know this was a problem, they shouldn't have rented out the rooms knowing there's be this level of noise. Nobody could sleep through this. It'd like living with a dentist.

The noise faded about 1:10 and after trying to get to sleep - and failing - the noise has started again in full force. Though Yotel as a concept is a good one and the rooms pefectly fine, this is the second problem I've had (the first was when they failed to open on time last October and I had to stay elsewhere) and it's hardly good PR for them.

Fingers crossed I get to sleep on the plane.

It's been a busy weekend and the pace probably won't ease up for the next few days. There's a lot to get done before I head westwards to see Jill in Iowa on Friday. I'm on stand-by for the earliest AA flight out of Heathrow on Friday which means that there's the possibility if everything goes to plan (ha!) I could arrive at Chicago at around 10:20 in the morning with my connecting flight to Iowa not leaving until 9:20 that evening. However there just so happens to be the massive Wizard Magazine event there over the weekend and the venue is about ten minutes from the airport. Some of the guys at Millarworld have said they'd be happy to store baggage and meet up for a drink, so this could be my Plan A (Plan B-Z being staying at the airport and cooling my heels for all of ten hours or more).

The last couple of days have been finishing the sleeves for the next wave of HLWW DVD releases (just waiting on a couple of photos to drop in to the designs I've put together) but everyone seems happy with those - and also putting together several articles for #200 of Impact and need to do more before I leave. I also need to sort out my Yotel for Thursday night, get a haircut and finish packing. It's all do-able in theory.

In my little bit of downtime I've also watched next Saturday's 'The Stolen Earth' episode of Doctor Who, kindly supplied by the BBC and which will allow me to put together the review of the Who season for Impact while I'm gone. I could spoil you all, but then Russell T Davies would probably personally exterminate me. Suffice to say it's jam-packed full of familiar faces, some old enemies, some nice one liners and a plot that is as gloriously fanwankery as you fear and hope to wish for. The only problem now is that I have to wait OVER two weeks to see the finale.

All things are relative.

The internet, of course, seems to bring out the best and worst in people - and often a lack of tolerance of various different hues. Take for instance a thread on one of the main Doctor Who forums which addressed Russell T Davies and the gay references that crop up from time to time in his show. This weekend's episode Midnight, had a female character (Lesley Sharpe in excellent form) making a passing comment that her ex-partner was a she'. No big deal or plot point, but in an episode about paranoia and intolerance, perhaps subtely apt.

I can tolerate idiots. I really can. I've occasionally been one myself and everyone's entitled to talk out of their posteriors at some point or another.

What I can tolerate much less is everyday aspects of what I call DRE (the Donald Rumsfeld Effect) where someone can look you in the metaphorical eye and tell you something that you know isn't true, but that you have no choice but to go along with despite their rewriting events and you resisting the inclination to shake them and say 'Huh?' many times in quick succession.

It's not the 'because I say so' parental variation which sometimes comes in handy for moderating and, well, parenting; it's the 'I know I said I agreed with you and you've gone off and done stuff based on that agreement, but now I'm explaining that I really didn't agree at all and now YOU have to fix it...' variation.

If people said what they meant and didn't expect you to have some inherent mind-reading ability about the likelihood they'd flip-flop the minute you left the room , life would be much more tolerable.

Sometimes I feel like doing 'a Wesley Gibson' (a la the character in WANTED, which I hope to see in London early Thursday) but it usually ends up more like doing a 'Dilbert'.

Well, I was apparently quoted in both The Scotsman and The Scottish Mail on Sunday this past weekend, in relation to the forthcoming (firth-of-forthcoming?)Highlander remake that got formally announced last week. It's been in the works for a while but this was the first public annoucement and it created some nice - albeit understandably sceptical - coverage in the genre and movie press.

I was contacted by Brian Pendreigh, whom I know from the film critic circuit, who was writing the article and though I've only seen the online version of the piece, I think it reads fairly fairly given the baggage that the franchise has. Peter Davis, the late Bill Panzer's business partner was quoted as well and dropped in names '...in the ilk of as Ewan McGregor and Kevin McKidd'. That's not, of course, to suggest either of those two individuals are actually signed-up (yet!), though I could see McKidd handling it well.

I will now be attending the Cinema Days event this weekend, though on 2 1/2 of the four days as I really need to make sure my stuff for Impact is done and dusted. Also still trying to formally schedule the Iowa trip for the end of the month. Hash, one of the main people behind Urban Species in London just mentioned to me that the big Wizard Magazine con in Chicago is the weekend I fly out. Though it's technically possible it would fit in with plans - and I may even pass through the airport - I think it would add to the cost and length of the trip, so maybe next year.

Ah well, back to the deadlines and anxious wait for the second part of Stephen Moffat's Doctor Who bibliographical epic (which I'll have to tape, dammit!) this weekend.