I’m on a roll…
I used to be on a bagel, but seriously folks.
A couple of years ago, there was a huge covenience store/deli a block from me. It was an all right place, though I didn’t shop there often since the prices were a little too much for convenience store food. They did have some awesome fudge (I told you it was big.)
Anyway, they closed last year. I think it was because they couldn’t pay the rent. The place never seemed to have more than a couple people in it at any time, so that doesn’t surprise me. It was empty for a little while, then there were construction workers chopping the place in two (It looks like it was originally two stores.) One of them became a restaurant, and the other became a 7-11 – the bane of modern existence. All the processed food you can eat and then some.
And with a super-cheap, super crappy convenience store comes loads and loads of cops. Talk about cliché. Now I’m not actually complaining about the fact that there are many (many, many) cops in my neighborhood, but we’re talking about the Upper East Side of NYC – not exactly the crime capital of the world. Before the 7-11, there were plently of cops walking around here. I don’t know if they’re just starting out and need an easier neighborhood, or if they’re supposed to be somewhere else, but I remember once seeing a cop on almost every corner on my way home from the subway (there wasn’t anything special going on that I knew of.)
Of course, this neighborhood isn’t a cakewalk. But there are far worse neighborhoods. At least stand to the side of the sidewalk and don’t yell at the jerk who’s honking his horn. You’re worse than the kids who hang out there after school.