1) Sitting on my bench, a little boy came over to show me his acorn. What does an acorn turn into? I asked him. An oak tree! He was probably 4. He was with a younger brother & a baby, and his mom, whose hair was well past her knees ~ the longest hair I've ever seen. I thought of my mom, who also had 3 kids under the age of 4 at one point. This woman didn't look the least frazzled & maybe my mother didn't either.
2) On the corner of 5th St, I overheard a man tell the woman with him that this was the block with the Hells Angels clubhouse. That was 3rd Street, I called to them. They stopped & we chatted about the neighborhood & how it's changed, & what businesses & people were still there or not. Chris & Virginia: old friends in a moment.
I love my neighborhood, no matter how many beloved residents & restaurants & stores disappear, no matter how many killing e-bikes replace them.