The next morning I awoke early – it took a while to organise my chaotic appearance into one resembling a gainfully employed person. I walked from my small Housing Association flat in Leicester Square up Piccadilly and across Green Park to Belgravia. When I got to Eaton Place Jacqueline let me in and told me (as best she could) that she was very happy that I was there to help out. I sat in the kitchen (dark wood units and another smaller Peter Beard photo sans blood) under a large plasma screen T.V; waiting for Mike to come upstairs as apparently he was still sleeping in his basement bedroom.
He finally emerged around 11am tanned and fit which was lucky since he was only wearing a pair of blue check Ralph Loren boxer shorts. He lunged for a cigarette from the pack and lighter resting in a clean Hermes ashtray sitting on the table. He took and opened in a single gesture a Diet Coke from the huge steel American fridge. The kitchen was full of expensive gadgets – fitted coffee machines, icemakers, ovens of various sizes and a 6 plate gas hob. Expensive 1950’s style blenders, toasters and food processers lined the preparation space. Clearly the designer had observed the 1st rule of kitchen planning – the richer the client – the less likely it is that they cook – the more gadgets they need.
Mike guzzled down his Coke left his half smoked cigarette in the ashtray without putting it out and leapt up. ‘Come on then, we have so much to do’ his tone suggesting that I may somehow be the reason that we were starting our day together an hour later than planned.
I followed him downstairs into a long beige corridor. Fitted wardrobes and bureaus ran most of the length of the hallway. Half way down was the office. He ushered me through the door into the tiny over furnished workspace. By the time he entered the room behind me we were in a serious overcrowding situation. The walls were green and dark wood cabinets housed filing draws the length of the wall. The desk at the far end had two flat screen computer screens both switched on to porn sites and two office chairs side by side (if you have ever flown coach you will understand the true implication of this statement). Above the computer screens, attached to the wall were 4 plasma TV screens. Wooden shutters kept the room dark which I always like. The overall vibe was terribly Gordon Gekko or at least it would have been had someone bothered to wire up the monitors to Bloomberg for full effect. Every surface was covered with unopened mail – the filing cabinets were jammed open with paper work, ashtrays and their former contents littered every surface. ‘You can get started on this’ Mike gestured towards the envelopes then throwing me a bunch of keys ‘ and ‘tomorrow on your way in, get yourself a set of these.’
