Off the Cuff / My Other Journal

New York City

There was once a time when gridlocks were outlawed in New York City. Law or no law,I see that they have crept in again. Even when the traffic lights favor us, as pedestrians, we have to slip and slide among vehicles, but I don't mind that, for there is so much in New York. To me, New York is life.

Everywhere I look, I see a story, a human face, a half-formed epic, and most New Yorkers -true New Yorkers- walk fast as if trying to catch something or as if something is chasing them. People-watchers and dreamers like me are exceptions, and since New York has everything, it also has its exceptions.

I try not to stare at people, or at least I try not to make my staring too obvious, but my curiosity compels me. Little details of the ways, looks, and everyday lives of people on the street who I don't know interest me greatly, because what I don't know about, I make up inside my mind.

By the way, a few times tonight as we walked around, we saw a few men checking the insides of the thrash cans. They weren't so badly dressed either. Maybe nowadays NYC churches do better with clothing donations than other cities I've been to. Still, homelessness is a heartache for us all, especially in this cold. It makes me feel ashamed of my coat and anything warm I have access to.