He was pulling garbage out of the trashcan; eating chicken bones with flies on them; cursing his life. The bearded man shook his fist at God. Yelled out at him as people walked by. No one stopped.

Mickey Mouse was above on a wide screen. Telling all about the wonderful world of Disney. Double decker busses drove by carrying Japanese tourists snapping photographs. Elmo waved.

Around the corner on 42nd Street, locals fell out of bars; stumbling home in the morning hours. Old men remembered how it used to be. The Circus Cinema sign still lit up, but dimming. Soon, it will be gone. No more places for lecherous old men and young boys to go when feeling lonely. 

The old man ate chicken bones and cursed God. His coat stained from city filth. He came here years ago with good intentions and got lost along the way. Didn’t we all.