"Stan Nicholls - Throwing A Wobbly" - читать интересную книгу автора (Nicholls Stan)

regain his breath he was ready for the plod to the kitchen.
At the door, perspiration sheened and puffing, he stopped and glanced at
the windowsill. The bumblebee was still trying to climb the pot.
It went up, it bumped down. Went up, bumped down. Up. Down.
He could have sworn he heard it pant.

It was going to be a warm day. Damn it.
Cramer stood outside his apartment block, patting his pockets for car
keys. Black coffee and analgesics had taken the edge off his hangover but
he was far from comfortable. His head was full of shattered crystal and
his fresh clothes were already sweaty.
A posh looking woman shambled by. She wore a dress the size of a marquee.
But a designer marquee. It was still possible to detect a remnant of her
sophisticated beauty, now sabotaged by layers of fat. A lead attached her
to a small breed of dog, maybe a pug, although the word small was purely
academic. As sour-faced as its mistress, the animal was equally obese. Its
short legs were immense and bowed, its distended belly scraped the
pavement.
Further along the street a huge traffic warden leaned on a parking meter,
gulping air.
Once again it occurred to Cramer that a bizarre kind of equality had been
imposed.
He found the keys and unlocked his car. In common with most vehicles still
on the road it had been customised to meet the new requirements. The
chassis and axle were reinforced. All but the driver's seat had been
removed, and that was set well back. Even so, he had trouble squeezing
into it.
Having mopped his brow with a handkerchief, he checked the address and
started out. By necessity, his speed was low.
So were his spirits. The frustration at having to change his plans and
disappoint Melanie was sharpened by the feeling that he was about to
investigate a false alarm or hoax. Just like all the others.
He passed a trio of joggers. Two women and a man, decked out in voluminous
track suits, any of them could have doubled as a primary-coloured blimp.
Not that they were likely to be called upon to perform such a task. The
women each held one of the man's arms and were gently steering him toward
a bench. He was ashen faced, breathless from over-exertion.
Cramer allowed himself to drive a little faster and snapped on the radio.
' ... leading health food manufacturer Weightanull brings you Slimofast,
the revolutionary new aid to weight reduction. Have the benefits of
slimming supplements and strenuous regimes proved too thin for your
liking? Are you fed up with faddish diets? Tired of tedious exercise? Then
look no further! Because Slimofast is guaranteed to work!'
A chorus of what appeared to be demented chipmunks warbled,
'Slim-o-fast, Slim-o-fast,
makes those pounds melt off at last.
Slim-o-fast, Slim-o-fast,
now your flab's a thing of the past!'
'Yes, Slimofast, the miracle weight-loss tonic. Proven effective and
entirely safe. Slimofast, enriched with age-old wonder ingredients