The Man With the Briefcase

"I sometimes dream of retiring to some rural cottage, but I'm afraid of getting bored," says writer. "What are you doing here?" asks a police officer wearing so much armor and padding under his uniform. The smell of coffee and kebab greets me at Kentish town station; there are also plenty of pubs in the area where I can waste my money and time. Anything to delay that grim moment when I turn the key and step into the bare, lonely gray of my studio apartment.