There's no place like it.
I wasn't tired, I wasn't bored but I was overcome with an irrational need for juice at 11 PM. Juice is a pretty ridiculous craving on a Wednesday night but not so silly that I wouldn't slip on some shoes and walk to the local convenience store. I walked for a few minutes down Lincoln Ave... past the indie rock kids filing out of the Regina Spektor show, past the darkening windows of the restaurants and hardware store. I walked into the convenience store. A few minutes spent in front of the juice selection and I walked up to the register with a bottle of apple juice. I quickly pondered some chapstick as I listened to the following exchange...
(Older graying woman upper 40's talking to the young 20's checkout boy)
Woman: ...you know I miss it everyday.
Boy: You do?
Woman: Yes, Chicago isn't the same. It's quieter, there's less hustle and bustle. I miss the crowded city streets and noisy movement.
Boy: I've never been to New York.
Woman: Oh you should go, you should definitely go. There's no place like it.
Boy: I've never actually been outside the midwest. I've been to Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana... oh and Texas.
Woman: Plane tickets are cheap... about $160.
Boy: Some day (insert wistful look in his eye)... some day when I'm rich and famous I will go.
Woman: Yes, you definitely should. You know it's actually really cheap. You don't have to spend any money at all to sit on a park bench and watch the world go by.
Boy: Hmmmm.