New York City, March 16, 2015

★★ Bright clear sun was quickly suppressed, before it could inspire any hope or enthusiasm. Pruning crews were up on cherry pickers snipping the strings of lights off the trees on Broadway. A dim blue light gimmered on a trove of abandoned drink bottles in the express track bed. The cold sank in through the sneakers. Thin sunlight fell on the afternoon. The microclimate of Lincoln Square had a tenuous warmth altogether absent downtown. A white contrail ran across the duller white sky.