New York City, February 14, 2017

★★ The blended blue and white became a blend of white and gray. The day seemed completely ordinary, hour to hour. The cold of morning was ordinarily bitter; by lunchtime it was easy to walk around in, which likewise seemed ordinary. The clouds at some point had absented themselves and a blazingly bright sun threw the long shadows of air conditioners diagonally down a side wall, which was normal enough, in the moment. Only in the dark of evening, when it became necessary to unzip the layers, did the temperature’s long upward climb become apparent and a little unsettling.