When I took the bus in 1981, with my cousin, at the start of our two-month trip through Mexico & Central America, I loved the scrubby landscape from San Antonio to Laredo. I thought I would be happy driving a bus that route, back & forth, day after day, seeing nothing but rundown, non-majestic south Texas. These subway pillars make me happy in the same way. They're not glitzy or renovated or facelifted. They look like they've lived their years.