Change is inevitable.
And as you get older you see more and more change. Some good, some bad. Some incomprehensible.
When I moved into my neighborhood there were bodegas on 5th Ave with bullet proof glass and guys playing dominoes all night long in the summer to the sounds of loud music. Crack was sold out of the apartment building a few doors down and sexual favors were sometimes performed in the lobby of a building a few doors up. But overall is was a nice block and as time marched on, the bullet proof glass enclosed bodegas moved out to make room for antique shops, restaurants, more restaurants and coffee houses. Apparently yuppies cannot get enough coffee.
Now gentrification is spreading to the outer reaches of the neighborhood to areas that I NEVER, EVER thought it would reach. What do I know? Recently, a car service store front closed, only to re-open as <shockingly> another coffee shop. This one is extra special because it has an ATM grotto. What is that you ask? I had no idea what it was either until I passed it one day. The alcove had been there for a few weeks and I wondered what would go in there. It looked like an alcove suitable for a statue of Mary, or perhaps a saint. Now there is an ATM there. I call it the ATM grotto. When I showed the picture to some of my friends, they all made the same comment…that people will be praying at the ATM that their card comes back out. Or their money comes out. Or they don’t get held up making a withdrawal. I guess the more things change, in some ways, the more things stay the same. Amen.
8 comments
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May 21, 2008 at 3:31 am
jimmyboi2
Salve regina, mater misericordiae, vita dulcedo et spes nostra, salve! Ad te clamamus exsules filii Hevae… nostra carta est in manus tua… per favor, manda meum cartus meus!
WHAT a time I would have in Brooklyn… having coffee AND praying !
May 21, 2008 at 4:41 am
AKLizzy
At first glance, I thought it was either A)A urinal??! or B) A hand-sanitizer dispenser.
The ATM Grotto is far more sophisticated than option A! Maybe if the ATM Grotto runs out of money, it could be multi-use….
Did you know that Anchorage has 2.8 coffee stands per 1000 people. Seattle has 2.6. Santa Monica has 2.1. Aaaaah, Java! It sounds like Brooklyn may be in the running for the most coffee-saturated areas.
May 21, 2008 at 11:23 am
bonnieluria
So very funny- very, very funny.
The way I see it is the new totem of the American economy will soon be the $5 bill.
Five bucks for a cup of coffee, five bucks for a gallon of gas and you’ll need to get them at the same time.
Puts’ the convenience in convenience store.
I loved this post, Carol and encourage you to do more insightful, sociological venting on your blog.
May 21, 2008 at 1:12 pm
wrjones
It sounds like you miss the crack dealers and ho’s. They probably are a lot more colorful than yet another coffee joint. I do like the look of that old brick.
May 28, 2008 at 9:31 pm
wrjones
Oh, Carol, you must have completed spring cleaning by now. Can you come out to play yet?
June 2, 2008 at 7:15 pm
wrjones
Is milking that hip? Get him out there on that yard work.
June 6, 2008 at 12:31 pm
wrjones
Yoo hoo – you have nodded off again.
June 20, 2008 at 11:14 am
Damascene
Somehow i missed the point. Probably lost in translation 🙂 Anyway … nice blog to visit.
cheers, Damascene!!!