Word: acridity
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...next morning, the acrid smell of explosives had wafted to the nearest village, and someone tipped off the cops that looters might be at work. The following night police staked out the tomb. Three raiders were caught; two got away. State press reports hailed the arrests as a triumph, but instead of filling in the hole and posting a guard, the underfunded local cultural-relics bureau simply placed wooden planks across the hole and tossed in some dirt. Before long, other gangs pilfered at least 200 treasures, mostly ceramic statues, from the site. Among the loveliest of these pieces...
...road signs and few inhabitants outside the capital mean reliance on other markers. "It's best to follow the telephone lines," our driver says. "They always go someplace"-in our case, straight into a big gold mine where giant earth-digging machines belch fumes and wildcatters pan in acrid ditches. (Mining is Mongolia's most valuable industry, though most Mongolians work in agriculture. Pollution is a problem around Ulan Bator, especially from the burning of soft coal in power plants...
...road signs and few inhabitants outside the capital mean reliance on other markers. "It's best to follow the telephone lines," our driver says. "They always go someplace"--in our case, straight into a big gold mine where giant earth-digging machines belch fumes and wildcatters pan in acrid ditches. (Mining is Mongolia's most valuable industry, though most Mongolians work in agriculture. Pollution is a problem around Ulan Bator, especially from the burning of soft coal in power plants...
...Construction at the bomb site is already underway; hammering and the whine of electric saws disturb contemplative mourners and the curious who venture there. What was once the Sari Club is now a vacant lot, the crater filled with offerings, notes, candles and bouquets. Burning incense barely conceals the acrid smell of burnt metal, but at least the odor of charred flesh has dissipated. A few doors down, souvenir stalls offer 50% off all merchandise, but no one is buying. Says shopkeeper Sita: "Nobody comes, and if they do, they aren't in the mood after seeing all this tragedy...
...them wind up in Sidney's office, with Elwell uttering the oldest line in his little black book: "Don't I know you from somewhere?" Rita throws a righteous fit but finally accedes. After Sidney leaves them alone with two drinks and an unmade bed, Rita, in a deliciously acrid twist, sullenly acknowledges that they had met before. "Palm Springs. Two years ago. Don't tell Sidney...