12/22: Scenes from New York

Walked west on 10th Street this morning and caught lots of beautiful little NYC moments:

Hip NYU kids with no shoes on sitting outside their dining hall looking rebellious but decidedly well-off enough to afford shoes.

Laborers in faded white merchant vans inching past parked cars and moving trucks on their way from one job to another.

Turning the corner and heading north on 6th Ave and catching a glimpse of the dim skyline through gaps in the buildings, wondering what New York would look like without all the steel and glass and whether we’d even notice the skyline then.

A daydreaming commuter brought back to reality by three or four short muted beeps from a taxi driver.

A stranger eyeing me warily when I hold open for her the door to the blue mailbox on the corner, waiting until the last possible minute to grace me with a smile.  

Turning the corner again and simultaneously taking in the Hudson, New Jersey, the High Line, and all the old packing plants south of 14th street.

I like NYC a lot more when I keep my head up.