Empty buildings and sidewalks.

Not a lick of life.

The occasional human that passes is wrapped up in a mask.

A population belittled into anonymity.

Silent city.

Silent people.

Silent structures.

The absence of human energy pushes your attention to the structures. 

There were so many beautiful art deco built in Boston last century.

Where did those stylists go? Why did they lose favor?

At some point the utilitarian designers and their ‘brutalist’ methods won the day.

Now the mismatched structures make for unhappy neighbors. 

The future comes fast.

Move with it and without resistance.

Breath what you see.

When I stood at this place it felt like the future.

An arching walkway used by walkers, runners and bikers.

A place neither cold nor hot. 

Completely neutral in one way. Overwhelmingly joyous in another.

Blasts of sun through the swaying branches.

Folks laughing in the grass.

Small sailboats drift by.

It’s a real, living simulation of a postcard.

This recently opened park in Boston screams efficiency. It connects the Charles River Esplanade with the Cambridge and Charles Street intersection at the foot of the iconic Longfellow Bridge. 

Go out and let the energy pull you. Your instincts will take over. Wait for the moment. Listen to nothing. Hear everything. Let your spirit guide you. Snap.

The lockdown means no traffic.

No restaurants.

No shops.

No people.

Like an apocalyptic cityscape in a made-for-TV movie that simultaneously attracted and scared me as a kid.

But it’s real.

Kind of.

A personal downside is that I haven’t taken full advantage of the wicked empty lockdown scenes around me.

The upside is that I interrupted that pattern yesterday and went to the financial district in Boston to see what I’ve been missing. 

With me was my smartphone and a Moment Wide. If you are into dramatic angles and flares, check it out.

It was a Thursday afternoon just after close of the financial markets. You’d typically see people leaving the office for an early happy hour. Not on this day. It was an empty scene.

Lots of construction happening. Though no construction workers.

Boarded up windows from the recent protests.

Cranes, heavy equipment and temporary fencing. But no engines running.

There are a good number of art deco influenced buildings in Boston’s financial district which I really dig. And then there are a bunch of mid-70s era utilitarian, maybe ‘brutalist’ style? buildings which are interesting in their own right, but not pleasing to the eye.

The words that come to mind. Clean. Simple. Sharp. Strong. Upright. Geometric. Three dimensional flourishes.

The clear skies on a hot summer day made for big shadows.

Going back this weekend. 

To be continued.