August 16, 2008 - Salt Lake City, Utah Airport

I enter the airport from outside through a long covered ground walkway, as I have done many times in the past. The warmth of the sun’s dying rays, as the day winds to a close, hit my face as I walk under this sheltered pathway. I enter the airport and a blast of icy air-conditioned air hits me, making me shiver. I climb the escalator to the main terminals, searching around for something remotely interesting to do, but finding nothing but a few fast food places and a number of stores that lack both charm and appeal, hosting the typical, generic airport products. I venture forward, finding my gate, although my flight will not be departing for a brutal 5 hours. The airport is slightly less deserted than the last, but still I would not describe it as bustling, like so many airports are. As I cannot find nothing worthwhile to eat or browse, I decide to find myself a place to set my things down and possibly take a nap, even though I slept through the entire previous 2 hour flight. I search for an acceptable nook. This proves to be more difficult than I had imagined. Finally I spy an abandoned airplane pillow sitting in a deserted, carpeted corner, even equipped with an outlet to charge my ipod. The pillow beckons me over, a sign as my father would say. I lay my things out and place my sweat shirt over the small white pillow , so as not to touch it. The place I have chosen to be my resting place for the next 5 hours resides right next to the formidable glass smoking room, which seems to lack a door. The faint smell of cigarette smoke wafts over to my resting place every now and then, providing my new-found bed with a pleasant aroma (please note sarcasm in voice). I look into the room and to my surprise two young boys walk into the room and light up their paper cancer sticks. They don’t look like they could be even over 16 years old. After they have finished with their toxic inhalations they remain in the smoke filled room talking, so as to not only get the first hand death smoke, but also the even more deadly second hand smoke.