Things are mostly "normal," if weirdly so. Things didn't work right on Tuesday - subways not running, bridges closed, streets almost free of traffic, phones intermittent, stores closed, etc. But there was also an odd holiday atmosphere on Tuesday afternoon - the weather was beautiful, and people were off from work, so the parks were full and so were the restaurants. Of course, no one could talk about anything but the disaster, but there was a perverse carnival feel to things too. ... Doug
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Right on. That's good to hear. Fuck it, go to the park, hang out, enjoy the day. What is that light headed-ness that takes over in the middle of chaos and destruction? A giddiness of being, the dissolving of bondage, a taste of comraderie and freedom, a few hours to blow off because nothing else is going on for the rest of the day.
The world is falling apart, so time to relax. What the hell? That was exactly my feeling on Tuesday. Unfortunately, I had to go back to work Wednesday. Sorry to break up that magic cross-continent solidarity.
So, maybe it wasn't so perverse. Maybe NYC has a much dreaded California streak after all. I did see a lot people with dark glasses and short sleeves in the background of various news footage. I guess it wasn't tasteful to show dogs running after frisbies, office workers changed instantly into shorts flopped on the grass, couples out walking around, the ubiquitous joggers trotting past.
So, can the party last until at least the beginning of next week, or has some sort of grim determination to get back to the oppressions called normalcy set in?
Chuck Grimes