I just got a call from an American bitch. Sorry, an American pension fund of mine. She was fast and crisp. Well, too fast and too crisp. Too harsh. The purpose of the call, which reached me surprisingly late in the evening, was entirely technical: they cannot pay me in euros but in dollars. Collecting my wits about me, I explained that this was fine with me, as my bank would automatically turn dollars into euros, just as it would deal with pounds sterling. “All right,” said the bitch. I asked her whether I could be of any further assistance. “Goodbye,” she said and hung up. God bless America. And her boyfriend or husband.