random thoughts – Day 1,850 – (Thursday) –cold stone

Ice. 

Working remotely on Wednesday (dead car battery) meant going into the office on Thursday, and on each of these days, working in the "wrong" space had me confused as to what day it was. There were just a couple of us in the office today, so it felt like Friday. Kicking back at home tonight, it feels like Friday. This could make the actual Friday confusing.

The weather widget thingy on my phone led me to believe that it was warm this afternoon, and I optimistically strode forth to the streets of downtown. It was not warm. Instead, it was breezy and I needed to zip my Thinsulate-lined winter coat closed to prevent freezing to death, which is only a tiny exaggeration. 

There was ice on the bricks on the shaded side of the Trolley Museum. It's nearly mid-April, it's supposed to be warmer and I took offense to its presence. It wasn't thick, and looked like the coating of ice at the end of the driveway the other morning. 

The high school hadn’t let out for the day yet, so the streets were quiet. It was surprising to see that the cobblestones, which were freshly and painstaking reset by hand late last summer, are already going wonky. One lady gingerly jaywalked across the street across stones that are not as close together as they seemed to be a few months ago. 

That street repair didn't last long.

At the corner of Shattuck and Market Streets, the sewer grate looks depressed (aren't we all?) and the surrounding stones are already all askew after just a few months. Water leak? All the rain this winter? Frost heaves? Snow and plowing issues? Who knows. Whatever the cause, it seems we can have nice things, just not for very long. How does Rome manage? their cobblestone streets are centuries older than ours and seemed a lot more stable.

Except for being cold and the perilous sinking stone street, it was a successful walk. Meaning, I was in continuous motion for 20 minutes and managed to not spend any money by avoiding entering any stores. Whatever it takes.