New York City, December 17, 2017

★★ Broad, subtle shades of white and blue rippled in the clouded morning sky. A thin orange line traced the horizon behind the New Jersey hills. The snow blanket on the rooftop across the way was thin and threadbare. Down below, the snow had been reduced to gray lumps and a hanging dampness. The winter coat did not need zipping up, but it also did not need to come off in the drafty emptiness of the newly opened barbershop. The sky gathered itself from uncertainty and used the last light to scatter gleaming pink highlights across the west.