St Nicholas Ave July 2008

I had planned to take the A train downtown and walk around Central Park. It was the weekend though and as usual the A train was not running above 168th St. I took the bus down to 168th St but spotted the beginning of St Nicholas Ave and decided to walk down the Ave all the way to Central Park. St Nicholas Ave wanders down the spine of upper Manhattan like the zig zag walk of a drunken sailor. I t is a comparatively quiet back water. At any moment I expected to come across the Mystic Knights of the Sea from the old Amos and Andy show. The buildings are pretty, there is little shopping, half the people I encountered seemed to try to sell me on the virtues of Jesus Christ. Two panhandlers. One, a healthy looking guy I ignored. The other, a young woman, said that she had no food for her children. I gave her all the change I had. I am a sucker for an appeal for children. I am probably also a fool.

St Nicholas Ave July 2008