Dear Diary:
It is half-past six and I am sprint-walking down Seventh Avenue. I dash madly across it onto Bleecker, through a rivulet of Citi Bikes decorated with sluggish models and helmeted Midtown suits. Once across (unscathed!), my momentum is interrupted by the syrupy meander of a young couple, obviously from out of town. I am nearly angry until I catch their conversation: the boy is pointing at 1 World Trade Center.
“Surely you recognize that building?â€
The girl shakes her head.
The boy says: “1 World Trade Center, nearly complete!â€
To which the girl replies: “They built a new one?â€
Where has she been for the past decade, I wonder, laughing.
I glance down Seventh Avenue: the traffic has picked up again, barreling south, and the daylight is by now leaping into the Hudson. The tower glistens against the gathering evening. I have stopped laughing.
Yes. We built a new one.
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