The Write Angle: The Way We Are

According to the reviewing site Yelp, there have been 26,160 restaurant closures in the United States during the pandemic months. Approximately sixty percent of them, 15,770, have no plans of reopening. Wandering around parts of New York City this summer has been a sobering, albeit fascinating, experience. I can certainly attest to the dramatically altered landscape. In fact—when all is said and done around here—permanent restaurant closures will almost certainly eclipse sixty percent.

But it’s not just the eateries. In the month of July, there were 13,177 vacant apartments in Manhattan compared with 5,912 a year ago. It is estimated that 420,000 residents left town in the months of March, April, and May—and many of them aren’t coming back. Men and women have been given the green light to return to the office, but most of them continue to work remotely and may never return. Midtown Manhattan is a quasi-ghost town.

The city's theaters are shuttered at least until the end of the year. And even if they are permitted to open up at, say, twenty-five percent capacity, how long can they survive with those minuscule audiences? Not very long. The tourist-dependent restaurants, souvenir shops, and other businesses in the theater district are closed and most of them, I suspect, have no prospects of reopening. I saw a sightseeing bus in my travels—which are ubiquitous in the best of times—with a half-dozen riders on it. Most of their buses remain garaged. It’s actually a very interesting moment to go sightseeing in the city. So, I continue my meanderings in this singular snapshot in time, offering up random observations of this, that, and the other thing. Keeping in mind all the while that the way we were isn’t ever going to be the way we are.

As seen from a passing Number 1 train: my old Catholic grammar school on Godwin Terrace in the Kingsbridge section of the Bronx. It's been leased to the New York City public school system for decades now. Every little bit of revenue helps with the pedophile priest pay-offs.

Excellent Dumpling House lives to serve another day with a great outdoors dining option.

There are pink swans and the one and only Craig Swan. Yes, I can't help but get nostalgic for baseball when it was baseball.

There's a lot of garbage piling up around town and a lot of street dining, too. The latter may help some restaurants survive. But come October, then November, and December...what then? At least the rats are feeling a little better about things.

Hopefully, things will be looking up by the mid- to late-fall. I look forward to the day that I can dine inside this classic old school diner with the world's smallest bathroom.

Now that looks like a pretty tasty slice of New York pizza. It always bothers me to see one like this!

There are, I fear, a few more things to fear.

While I don’t typically take photos of the homeless, I thought this shot spoke volumes about the present state of the city and its many challenges.

Keep calm and store on...sound advice, I guess.

I see that Mayor de Blasio has not been offered a speaking slot during the virtual Democratic convention. Must have been an oversight.

Also overlooked: Mayor Jenny Durkan of Seattle, Mayor Ted Wheeler of Portland, and Jacob Frey of Minneapolis. I wonder why?

While visiting an elderly relative, I am often compelled to watch the local news with her. It's something that I have sworn off of and now I know why. It's very depressing seeing story after story about shootings, muggings, and murders. And having, too, to sit through one commercial after another between violent takes. The worst of the advertisements are for the shows on in prime time. I don't watch network TV anymore and now I know why. The promos go a long way, though, in explaining why people are nuttier than ever. In simpler times we wistfully wondered "How will she make it on her own?" as she exited for Minneapolis off of I-494 in Bloomington. Food for thought: Would the WJM-TV of today be fully woke and throw-in with the Defund the Police movement in the city?