June 1, 2001

LONDON, ENGLAND

Dear Subscribers and Friends,

Mark and I are in the midst of a 10-country, 17-day lecture tour, sharing his new book The Making of Modern Economics, with freedom lovers and think tanks throughout the world. I will be posting brief diary entries in this column over the next couple of weeks to tell you all about it.

The timing for this trip isn't great; we just returned from 18 days in the Mediterranean, followed by our daughter Lesley's wedding less than a week after our return from Greece. And now we're heading across the Atlantic again. But at least we are traveling business class this time, which makes the flight bearable--even enjoyable! We relaxed with our feet up in our sleeper seats, enjoying the kind of food and service that used to be synonymous with air travel (and the reason passengers used to dress in their finest clothes for flying). Now people dress for combat duty or survivalist training when they fly, because that's what it feels like back in the trenches--er, cattle cars--er, I mean, coach seats. But in business class we feel rested, pampered, comfortable, and the first class waiting lounges even make the time between flights a comfortable experience. And with 12 flights in 17 days, we'll need all the pampering we can get!

First stop, London. In addition to the lecture tour, we will be arranging to have our flat remodeled. We purchased a great little 2-bedroom flat in St. Johns Wood back in 1985, when we had the opportunity to spend the summer in London. We returned every summer for five years, but then began letting it out to missionaries. Over the years it has become quite rundown, and we're ready to fix it up and reclaim it from the missionaries for our own use again. I'm looking forward to the decorating by day, and the theater by night, as I work on the project (returning next month).

Mark's lecture in London was sponsored by John Blundell at Institute for Economic Advancement. We also met with Eamonn Butler of the Adam Smith Institute (appropriately, since Adam Smith is the central figure in The Making of Modern Economics). Interest was keen. The attendees especially enjoyed Mark's novel presentation in playing classical music that he has chosen specifically for each economist highlighted in the book. We were taken by surprise when John asked what music Mark would recommend as his own theme song. What do you think? Any suggestions? We also were able to attend Arthur Seldon's 85th birthday luncheon the next day (Seldon is a co-founder of IEA.)

We were in London three days, and attended three plays--you can tell where my love lies! We saw a great new revival of My Fair Lady" with a perfect new nuance to the classic ending. Also attended "Stones in His Pockets," about two extras in a movie being filmed in Ireland. All the parts are played by two actors on a bare stage with no sets and minimal costumes. It was billed as a great new comedy, but I found it tedious, stereotypical, and overdone, more like an episode of "Whose Line is it Anyway" than a witty play. Our favorite production was Äll You Need is Love," a compilation of 58 Beatles songs with new arrangements that highlight the lyrics in dramatic new ways. An ensemble of ten singers and dancers perform the songs, selected around the theme of love but not always loving, as you will see in the second act. High energy and highly recommended--I plan to see it again when I return for the redecorating project next month.

Next stop, Stockholm. Check in in a couple of days for my report.

-- Jo Ann Skousen

email: jaskousen@mskousen.com

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