IEX 5977

IE is an Athens registration number and he looked like an arrogant Athenian road hog.

At 1135hrs, Friday May 24 last, at the junction of Urania's supermarket and the turn to Alpha Beta supermarket, I pulled up at a red light behind a red Smart car that seemed to be easing its way thru the light.

Ayoung girl of about 11 peddled across at her green light and this idiot scraped her and sent her tumbling.

I leapt out to see that she was ok, but she was picking herself up, shouted at the Athenian, mounted and peddled on.

I shouted at him and pointed to my eyes as if to say "I seen you, mate." He dismissed me with a wave, the lights had greened and off he zoomed. I got back behind the wheel and roared off and caught him up and honked and wagged my finger, then let him take off to sweat in his shame.

This morning i was buying my paper at the usual newsagent on Alessandros Ave where i've bought my cigs and Economist since forever and I wouldnt have looked round except this asshole was making a big deal about why didnt they have this and why didnt they stock that and didnt they know that X brand of cigarellos was all the rage in the big city?

"Is you," I said, wagging the familiar finger. He looked fiercely blank.

"Is you, red Smart car, IEX 5977, 11:30 at the Kondokali junction, knocked down that young girl."

All heads turn and that mob murmur rumbles.

"She wasnt hurt," I said: "Got up and peddled away, but all the same ... you come over here with your big city ways ... drive properly." Murmur crescendo.

He tells me I'm crazy, turns to his fellow Greeks and tells them I'm crazy, but they were getting pissed by his 'tude before that anyway, his poncy insistence on the posh panatellas 'n' all.

"There's a red car outside ... what was the number again?"

"Iota epsilon," I start. "C'est ca."

"The brat wasn't paying attention-"

Wrong move.

"Pay up and leave" said Dimitri, which he did with many a murmur about idiot foreigners.

Murmurs and a man with labourers forearms said that he worked round Kondokali and he'd be looking out for the car.

"You're taking a fucking foreigner's side?" he mocked.

"Was the girl ok?" asked Dimitri. I said sure, she just shouted at him and peddled on.

Labourer's arms pushed past the Athenian, none too gently: "I 'peddle' a big lorry" he rasped without bothering to look round. "You'll get more than a shout."