January 15, 2000:
There are some streets in this city with their tall, old brick building walls to the sky that form tunnels that act effectively as conduits for the movement of the freezing ice-shard winds that blow off the black ocean. I wander around these streets all day. For nothing really...looking. I walk past the orange cones or pylons, as some call them, lining the streets at the edge of the sidewalks. My intention was to capture with my pen, some of the faces that pass by on the streets, in the parks, on the trains. I saw no faces today. At least I can't remember them if I did. I was lost today in a mist of my own thoughts. I rambled about in my herringbone jacket, black trousers, white shirt, black tie, black leather shoes with concealed steel toes, and carried...rather swung a long pointed umbrella with its metal tip honed to a sharp point-should I be besieged by advantage-takers, of which there are many at this time in this city. And, not to speak ill of this city, they are everywhere in every city at this time. One has to be on guard. After the Rodham Act, carrying a weapon of any sort is a federal offense; which means time at the, formerly-regal, Country Club in Brookline which used to be an elegant club for playing golf, socializing, relaxing. It has since been converted to the Albright Federal Prison, mostly housing "criminals" who used to fall under the title of "self defenders". Anyway, the streets were all icy today. I watched a few old people lose there footing and fall, making all sort of noise. Passersby would glance in the direction of the fallen, quickly avert there gaze, and move on-wearing a smirk across their lips-knowing, not caring. No one wanted to step over that line that could easily mean litigation or police action. So many advantage-takers on the streets today. It made me a bit nervous. I suppose, no more than usual. I try to keep to my self, but that too, is a problem-a crime. I try rather hard to get out of the city's group activities, but people know where you live and work. They will come to fetch you if you are found absent from the activities. I guess I wouldn't mind so much, it's just that I remember how it was before. There were the same group activities: Fairs, parties, sporting events, gatherings to wave banners or cardboard signs, chili cook-offs, parades, bingo games, lotteries, television sit-com shows shown on gigantic screens in open-air arenas, et al. But attendance was optional then. Their thought was that too may people had been sitting at home and not interacting with the other people of the city. This, of course, would lead to a "moral collapse." So, it was suggested that people get out more, mingle, and they would, of course, receive a tax credit-also they would be interred into the big lottery which had so many of them excited.