There is not much of story behind this photograph. My friends and I left our car, apple-less, parked in a parking lot and returned an hour later after we finished picking up some groceries. While loading, I noticed something wedged in between the side-view mirror and the car. What could it possibly be? Your eyes are not deceiving you, that is a half eaten apple. The irony of all this was that there was a garbage can not too far away. There was also trash all over the lot, but that is a discussion for another day. This instance was mind-boggling to us. Did we offend someone or park to close to another car? Or is this just the run-of-the-mill, New York mentality that the street is your garbage disposal?

Every kid cherishes a snow day. The moment the first flurry appears, they bundle up and hike outside to build snowmen and make snow angels. The quintessential image of the winter snowstorm depicts children sledding down hills and vast fields of snow. Clearly, this image wasn’t illustrated in urban New York. My nephews and nieces fall into the category of children who love playing in the snow. Yet, their field is one of concrete and asphalt that turns to slush and mud fairly quickly. Even the nearby parks cannot boast large stretches of nature and land. Perhaps one may argue that these features are still located in protected areas like Prospect and Central Park, but what about our own backyards?

The area I live in is only slightly urban and I complain about the dirty snow and slushy street. Compared with Manhattan’s situation, my neighborhood looks like a winter wonderland. Yet, children still enjoy the non-snow, they are still ecstatic to jump in the puddles and make the best of their day off.