Saturday, September 17, 2011

Learning To Read

I am not reading my first book of choice.  I am not reading a book I may want to keep once it has been read.  I am reading big block of book that I can be rid of when I’m finished with it.  It’s a common problem here:  too many books; not enough apartment  (Kindles are very popular).  Local codes appear to allow for the selling of books on sidewalks (one vendor has had the same (street) parking space for 11 years-  his book-storage vehicle (car) parked in front of his plot of sidewalk..  That’s one solution.  Another is a carless commute.  And so I am learning to read.

Learning to read while standing.  Learning to read while grasping the same pole grasped by four hands above and one below mine.  Learning to read while ignoring the saxophonist playing IN THE MOOD.  Learning to read while ignoring the various begging strategies.  Collecting for the homeless.  Being the homeless.  Looking for a woman-  any woman, between the ages of 18 and 100  (‘That’s right!  I’ll even take a woman in her 90s-  as long as she’s a naturalized citizen!’).

One day, I will learn to read the weekend subway service-change notifications, but for now, they remain beyond my comprehension as I wait, fascinated by rats that dematerialize through a tiled wall under a faded paper cautionary tale:  ‘This area has been baited with rodenticide.  11-12-02.’  If only the rats could read.

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