Walking Alone
New York Magazine this week has a "Reasons To Love New York" issue out. Now, maybe this perpetuates the self-absorbed New Yorker stereotype, a sort of indulgent "See How Great We Are!" look in the mirror. But, hey, it's New York, we're New Yorkers, and, well, we really are that great. :-)
But beyond all that, I found this entry spoke quite a bit of truth, almost touching, even...:
In Manhattan, by contrast, the relentless crush of humanity makes solitude into something not to be rejected but to be embraced, even defended. When out-of-towners see us pass each other by with barely a grunt, they mistake our lack of small talk for coldness. Really, we’re exchanging a small, invisible gift: a moment’s silence.
There really is nothing like a stroll down some of the streets in this city. You can find a lot of smallness, in a city this big...
