On the street the mood is strange. Life looks normal, and yet it is not. At noon, an older man with grey hair and head hung stares blankly into the distance, almost like my dog when he is about to hunt an enemy animal in the distance.
At the drug store, the clerks are now in masks and gloves.
Key Food is peaceful and everyone is very well behaved. the lines are short, however the faces are drawn, and, dare I say it, scared? Eyes are without excitement, and some have dark circles under them.
As always, Key Food is there for us – when my children were small, during many a snowstorm, in the days after 9/11, and now. Although I don’t remember seeing the following water, paper towel, and toilet paper sign: “In an effort to satisfy as many shoppers as possible the following limits, per customer will apply…” And this, amidst plans to take down the building and build a condo. One developer has come and gone, another is in the works – the store was supposed to close years ago – and somehow, here it still is for us, the people of Park Slope. As always, I am so grateful.