As much as I may like to walk, I almost always go to work by car in the morning, and just a few times a year by mass transit.
Public transit employees are on strike today (the necessary price for a much needed reform) and my car's in the garage for service (bad timing on my part!). So, my wife drives me up to a certain point -on the way to her job- and then I have to walk for about half an hour.
Garbage collection workers were also on strike for about a week and called it off just a few days ago (but will strike again?). Most of the garbage from the strike has been picked up. Sidewalks are mostly free of …stuff.
Smell of bleach on the sidewalk, as some store-owner has been doing some early morning washing.
To my surprise (I shouldn’t be…) I notice I am moving faster than the cars.
Honking from some quick-tempered, late sleepers. Their red, green and yellow lights are dotting the early morning greyness.
Exhaust fumes… I thought we had gotten rid of those. People have been putting off the purchase of new cars, especially with the crisis. The car market is about 35% down from last year, which was also 30% down from the year before, so we will be seeing more and more clunkers in the foreseeable future.
Pigeon droppings complete the smelly landscape.
I reach an avenue and fast-moving cars start to pass me by again.
Walking through a park (we have a few of those) to cut through.
It’s mostly empty, with a few people going to work with rather dormant looks, a Japanese(?) couple jogging and a man walking his dog (or the other way round?)
Exiting the park and going back to my favorite side-streets. I dislike the early-morning sun and anything (like a wide avenue) that lets the light pass through is my enemy.
Children going to school. A girl is proding her younger brother to hurry up.
I bet she’s picked that expression from her mother.
A lady’s sipping on a coffee. I am zig-zagging through the narrow passages and I’m already there. Not too late…
Public transit employees are on strike today (the necessary price for a much needed reform) and my car's in the garage for service (bad timing on my part!). So, my wife drives me up to a certain point -on the way to her job- and then I have to walk for about half an hour.
Garbage collection workers were also on strike for about a week and called it off just a few days ago (but will strike again?). Most of the garbage from the strike has been picked up. Sidewalks are mostly free of …stuff.
Smell of bleach on the sidewalk, as some store-owner has been doing some early morning washing.
To my surprise (I shouldn’t be…) I notice I am moving faster than the cars.
Honking from some quick-tempered, late sleepers. Their red, green and yellow lights are dotting the early morning greyness.
Exhaust fumes… I thought we had gotten rid of those. People have been putting off the purchase of new cars, especially with the crisis. The car market is about 35% down from last year, which was also 30% down from the year before, so we will be seeing more and more clunkers in the foreseeable future.
Pigeon droppings complete the smelly landscape.
I reach an avenue and fast-moving cars start to pass me by again.
Walking through a park (we have a few of those) to cut through.
It’s mostly empty, with a few people going to work with rather dormant looks, a Japanese(?) couple jogging and a man walking his dog (or the other way round?)
Exiting the park and going back to my favorite side-streets. I dislike the early-morning sun and anything (like a wide avenue) that lets the light pass through is my enemy.
Children going to school. A girl is proding her younger brother to hurry up.
I bet she’s picked that expression from her mother.
A lady’s sipping on a coffee. I am zig-zagging through the narrow passages and I’m already there. Not too late…
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