New York City, September 13, 2017

★★ The early western clouds were silver-edged. It seemed the right time to lace up the new canvas sneakers. Overhead was white reticulated with deep blue. At midday, though, the air had acquired an indoor-swimming-pool humidity. The sky abruptly went fully gray. Light, scattered drops got bigger and more frequent, till it was time to get the new shoes inside. For a while a full rain was falling. After the radar said it was over, a fine drizzle was still keeping the cars and the pavement wet. Little precociously fallen leaves were turning to goo. The evening air got more and more suffocating, till the air conditioners had to be turned back on.