Ugly day. It is 44-degrees outside, with light rain and a dark grey sky. It is the kind of day where it only makes sense to pull on a heavy wool sweater, to sip espresso, to nibble on dark chocolate – especially if it is fine chocolate from Rococo Chocolates in London, and if it was brought back from there by my Rococo Records friends –-- and to listen to Fields of the Nephilim bootlegs all day. It is easy to be productive indoors on a day like this, to get some eBay work done, to work on some Super Eight Loop recordings, and to do some drawing. My Thursday run is best done earlier in the day, as the southbound route on Central Park can be pretty unpleasant in the afternoon. I had hoped to get out by 10:00 AM, and I managed to be out the door before 11:00 AM. You would think that on a miserable day like this, and in the late morning, there would be fewer dealers out on C.P., however, money calls, and the corners were still fairly busy, with guys in hoodies and parkas, acting like it was a nice day. During the outbound portion of the run, I started to notice a lot of Chicago Police squad cars, and even a paddy-wagon, driving slowly past me. It almost felt like I had a protective escort. Then, on the way back home, I realized that there was almost no one left on the street. I doubt the rain drove them in, as it had even let up a little bit.
