Falling Ash

Who knew that volcanic ash would become a subject we discussed over breakfast? That we would monitor its progress across Europe to determine when we could safely fly out of England? That its falling residue would concern us?

In case you have been ignoring all forms of news, a volcano erupted in Iceland, sending a thick plume of volcanic matter high into the atmosphere. It created a real threat to aviation. The cinders can interfere with jet engines, shutting them down in mid-flight.

It happened in 1989, when a KLM 747 lost all four engines en route to Alaska. The plane flew into a cloud of ashes from an erupting volcano 150 miles away. It dropped 14,000 feet before the pilots could restart the engines. As it fell, the Dutch pilot spoke to the passengers: "We are sorry to report that we have lost all four engines. We are trying our best to re-start them. I hope this does not cause you too much distress."

Of course not.

To prevent such a terrifying recurrence, all the airports in Britain and a good part of Europe have been closed for over two days, stranding passengers all over the world. We just heard that all flights out of London are cancelled tomorrow, too. We have friends who can't get out of Paris or Rio. That's rough.

Our plans to fly to Amsterdam for the weekend were scuttled by the lingering ash cloud. Our schedules had aligned nicely with the brief opening period of the Keukenhof Gardens, which the book "1000 Places to See Before You Die" tells us we must do. John says it is the most expensive book he ever bought because I make travel plans built around the places it suggests. He came to that conclusion after observing me going methodically through the book, checking things off. What did he expect?

We'll miss the Gardens this year. Instead of tripping through thousands of tulips, we'll stay in London and follow the slow progression of the ash cloud and the rapid pace of the British elections.

Notwithstanding the pedicures (or not) of the wives of the candidates (see "Toe to Toe," April 14) the first debate yielded a big victory for Nick Clegg, the leader of the Liberal Democrats. Voters deemed him the winner, which may now make the real contest between him and Tory David Cameron, with incumbent Gordon Brown a distant third. Newspapers are comparing Clegg to Barack Obama and calling the debate a game changer.

Those not invested in the outcome called it a channel changer.