24,000ft Above Delaware

Said goodbye to Philly. Susan L, who was on the orchestra's 2005 Asia

and 06 Europe tours really wanted to go on this one. We considered
stowing her in my suitcase but rejected the idea as impractical- and
probably illegal. (She's a lawyer y'know)

Philadelphia Airport

Woke up at 3.30 am having dreamt that I still hadn't got around to

packing-aaaaagh!
(I had)
The trouble with packing lists is that they give you a false sense of
security. I mean what if you've left something off the list?
Anyway that's what I did. I lay awake until it was time to get up and
then added all the things to my packing list that I had remembered in
the wee small...

That reminds me;
Heard the one about the insomiac, dyslexic, agnostic who lay awake at
night wondering if there was a dog? (Boom, boom!)

Susan Lewis, who is one of the kindest people I know, took me to the
airport at seven and, well, here I am.

Jim Cotter in Kuala Lumpur in 2005

Affectionately known as "WRTI's Asia Bureau" (Kuala Lumpur) -- here's Jim poised and ready at the mike to deliver his latest edition of Notes from the Road during the 2005 Philadelphia Orchestra Asia Tour.